1.Cherrapunjee - the Rain Capital of the World | 2.Rainfall Distribution at Cherrapunjee | 3.Heavy Rainfall at Cherrapunjee | 4.The terrain in and around Cherrapunjee | 5.The People | 6.The Language | 7.Iew-Sohra – Market Day at Cherrapunjee | 8.The Welsh Influence in | Cherrapunjee | 9.Recommended Reading

Cherrapunjee - the Rain Capital of the World

Cherrapunjee is a small town located on the southern edge of Khasi Hills, a dissected plateau at an altitude of about 4823 feet (1484 m) above mean sea level.  The meteorological observatory is situated at 4267 feet (1313 m) above MSL.   Cherrapunjee is locally known as ‘SOHRA’.  Khasi people of Mon-Khmer origin inhabit it.  It is the headquarters of Sohra Civil Sub-Division and falls in East Khasi Hills District of the Indian State of Meghalaya.  Meghalaya is one of the seven states of North East India with Assam to its North and sharing an international border with Bangladesh on its South.

As one proceeds northward from the Bay of Bengal over the plains of Bangladesh lying at almost sea level, the Khasi Hills erupt abruptly out of the flat lands towering to a height of about 4500 feet above MSL. Cherrapunjee falls directly on the path of Southwest Monsoon known as the Indian Summer Monsoon / Asian Summer Monsoon.  The deep gorges around Cherrapunjee help to funnel and converge the low flying rain bearing clouds over Cherrapunjee.  The upward thrusted rain clouds rapidly cool as they reach higher altitudes, condense and deluge Cherrapunjee.  The process of cooling is assisted by the flow of air from north and north-east to the south in the upper atmosphere from the himalayan ranges. This is noticed about 10 p.m. or later at night. Again in the early mornings as the sun rays warm the hills the lightened air makes way for the clouds trapped in the valleys and hanging low over the Sylhet plains to move up.  Most of Cherrapunjee rain is the consequence of air being lifted as a large body of water vapour.  Major part of the rainfall recorded can be attributed to the orographic features of the Khasi Hills here.  The heavy rainfall area indicated by Cherrapunjee is estimated to cover about 100 to 200 square km.  Compare this to the heavy rainfall area of only 5 square km of Mount Weialeale in Hawaii (USA), which is also not inhabited and is in the middle of ocean.  Cherrapunjee is about 400 km inland from the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean and is home to over 12000 people.

The average annual rainfall at Cherrapunjee from 1973-2007 (35 years) is 11,952.2 mm (i.e. 39.21 feet- i.e. 470.55 inches). Due to two consecutive years of below average rainfall in 2005 & 2006 the average has been pulled down to under 12,000 mm.  2007 received little more than the average rainfall at 12,646.8 mm.  Perhaps, we may be witnessing the changes in climatic conditions due to global warming that is being experienced and is under investigation by scientists. 

In 1974 it rained 24,555.3 mm (i.e. 80.56 feet – i.e. 966.74 inches).  The rainfall in 1974 at Cherrapunjee was the highest recorded annual rainfall in any one place in any one year in the whole world.  On 16^th June 1995, it rained 1,563 mm  in 24 hours (i.e. 5.12 feet – i.e. 61.53 inches).

 98% of the annual rainfall at Cherrapunjee is received in just eight months from March to October. November, December, January and February get nominal or no rainfall.  Rains during these months are mostly caused by cyclonic depressions in the Bay of Bengal.  In Mount Weialeale it rains almost equally all the 12 months – say about 1000 mm.  At Cherrapunjee June gets an average of 2,517.5 mm and July 3,145.2 mm.  It rained 8,204.7 mm in July 1974.  July 2004 received 5014.6 mm of rainfall causing flood havoc in Bangladesh.  The months of June and July put together account for 47.5% of the total annual rainfall at Cherrapunjee.  Please see chart for average month-wise distribution of rainfall at Cherrapunjee and the annual rainfall at Cherrapunjee since 1951.  For monthly rainfall data from 1901 please see ‘Monsoon Magic’. 

In the years 2005 and 2006, rains had been less than the average.   The total rainfall at Cherrapunjee in 2005 was 9,758.0 mm and in 2006 was 8734.1 mm.  November and December 2005 went dry totally.  It is normal for the rainfall to be below average in some years.  This you can see for yourselves from the rainfall chart from 1901.

Compare Last Year 2007's Rainfall (in mm) with 35 year Average

For the current rainfall and temperature data please see ‘Current Status’. Data as collected and recorded by India Meteorological Observatory at Cherrapunjee.