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See Also
See Again
© Getty Images
0 / 32 Fotos
A world without rain
- If rain were to permanently stop falling from Earth's skies, the consequences would be dire.
© Getty Images
1 / 32 Fotos
Global drought
- Shocking worldwide droughts will ensue. Rivers will dry up and crops will fail. But that's only the beginning.
© Getty Images
2 / 32 Fotos
Lack of fresh water
- Prolonged lack of precipitation will disrupt the circulation of fresh water—one of the most vital global processes necessary for life.
© Getty Images
3 / 32 Fotos
Plant life begins to perish
- Plants, many of which serve as a food source for animals and humans, will be the among the first victims of a world without water.
© Getty Images
4 / 32 Fotos
Animals start to succumb
- Shortly thereafter, livestock and some species of wildlife will begin to perish as a result of thirst and starvation.
© Getty Images
5 / 32 Fotos
Climate change
- Temperatures will increase dramatically, and the composition of the atmosphere will change.
© Getty Images
6 / 32 Fotos
Ice caps begin to melt
- Freshwater sources will further be impacted with the melting of the icecaps and glaciers, in which 68% of the freshwater on Earth is found. Ground water, which makes up 30%, will evaporate.
© Getty Images
7 / 32 Fotos
An impending catastrophe
- In desperation, humans will begin to dilute and desalinate the world's oceans. But this will only serve as a temporary measure against impending catastrophe.
© Getty Images
8 / 32 Fotos
Marine life dwindles
- Meanwhile, marine life will begin to dwindle. Once vibrant corals will bleach and die.
© Getty Images
9 / 32 Fotos
Disrupted food chain
- With no rainfall, more plant life will die—in huge numbers. Such an onslaught will imperil the entire food chain.
© Getty Images
10 / 32 Fotos
Desert conditions
- After just a year without rain, much of the Earth will be experiencing desert conditions.
© Getty Images
11 / 32 Fotos
Meteorological drought
- As the Earth's crust hardens and cracks, a phenomenon called meteorological drought will take place. This is the cumulative effect over time of deficient precipitation and water supply.
© Getty Images
12 / 32 Fotos
Aridity arrives
- As meteorological drought persists, aridity will define much of the planet's topography. The consequences for the environment, agriculture, the economy, health, and society will be devastating.
© Getty Images
13 / 32 Fotos
Worldwide famine
- Famine will sweep across the globe, initiating in regions already beset by hunger before advancing into the industrialized Western world.
© Getty Images
14 / 32 Fotos
Thirst on a global scale
- The search for fresh water will intensify. Mass migration will ensue, resulting in a large number of internally displaced persons and refugees.
© Getty Images
15 / 32 Fotos
Hydrological drought
- By now the world will be experiencing hydrological drought, the decline in precipitation that impacts groundwater recharge, streamflow, soil moisture, and levels in reservoirs and lakes.
© Getty Images
16 / 32 Fotos
Habitats wiped out
- Damage to habitats will be fatal, affecting wildlife in the terrestrial and aquatic ecoregions.
© Getty Images
17 / 32 Fotos
Desertification and erosion
- Intense aridity will whip up mighty dust storms, terrifying in their ferocity. The process of global desertification and erosion will begin.
© Getty Images
18 / 32 Fotos
Rainforests disappear
- Unchecked wildfires stoked by intolerable heat and fanned by relentless winds will destroy the world's rainforests, already bereft of life-giving precipitation.
© Getty Images
19 / 32 Fotos
Water pollution
- What little surface water is left will likely be contaminated by dead animals and human detritus.
© Getty Images
20 / 32 Fotos
Water rationing
- Water companies will have to start rationing supply, and the installation of compulsory water meters will be necessary.
© Getty Images
21 / 32 Fotos
Food shortages
- Food rationing will be enforced across developed nations. In some cases, discontinuation of food sales will be necessary. The price of both food and water will go through the roof.
© Getty Images
22 / 32 Fotos
Reduced power
- Energy costs will spiral. Power produced by hydroelectricity will be especially impacted as reservoirs run dry.
© Getty Images
23 / 32 Fotos
Socioeconomic drought
- A desperate situation will turn even worse as social unrest, conflicts, and wars over natural resources, including water and food, intensify and socioeconomic drought takes hold.
© Getty Images
24 / 32 Fotos
Drought stress
- The onset of drought stress compounded by lack of rainfall will kill off all remaining plant life on a massive scale globally.
© Getty Images
25 / 32 Fotos
Depleted oxygen
- Without plants to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, the air that we breathe will soon be depleted.
© Getty Images
26 / 32 Fotos
Air pollution
- Rising carbon dioxide levels coupled with increased temperatures will make oxygen levels in the air plummet. The Earth will start to die.
© Getty Images
27 / 32 Fotos
Effects on health
- Humanity will eventually be consumed by a global health crisis. Lack of rainfall and toxic air pollution will exacerbate respiratory diseases, and lead to the increase of vector-borne diseases and infections transmitted by water and food. The incidence of ultraviolet radiation at the surface of the Earth will promote the rates of skin diseases, including cancer and ophthalmological lesions.
© Shutterstock
28 / 32 Fotos
Greenhouse gas
- Carbon dioxide currently makes up just 0.04% of Earth's atmosphere, but with no plants to remove it, this deadly greenhouse gas will start to build up to dangerous levels.
© Getty Images
29 / 32 Fotos
The oceans evaporate
- Meanwhile with no rainwater to top them up, oceans, seas, and lakes will continue to evaporate. Eventually every body of water on Earth will be hypersaline and nearly all regular sea creatures would likely have died off.
© Getty Images
30 / 32 Fotos
The Earth dies
- Without abundant and consistent rainfall, most of life on Earth will be extinguished, including us. In fact, our once vibrant and colorful world will be barely recognizable and will effectively be an alien planet, rather like Mars. Sources: (NASA) (National Geographic) (American Meteorological Society) (Vedantu) See also: Mesmerizing photos of Mars
© Getty Images
31 / 32 Fotos
© Getty Images
0 / 32 Fotos
A world without rain
- If rain were to permanently stop falling from Earth's skies, the consequences would be dire.
© Getty Images
1 / 32 Fotos
Global drought
- Shocking worldwide droughts will ensue. Rivers will dry up and crops will fail. But that's only the beginning.
© Getty Images
2 / 32 Fotos
Lack of fresh water
- Prolonged lack of precipitation will disrupt the circulation of fresh water—one of the most vital global processes necessary for life.
© Getty Images
3 / 32 Fotos
Plant life begins to perish
- Plants, many of which serve as a food source for animals and humans, will be the among the first victims of a world without water.
© Getty Images
4 / 32 Fotos
Animals start to succumb
- Shortly thereafter, livestock and some species of wildlife will begin to perish as a result of thirst and starvation.
© Getty Images
5 / 32 Fotos
Climate change
- Temperatures will increase dramatically, and the composition of the atmosphere will change.
© Getty Images
6 / 32 Fotos
Ice caps begin to melt
- Freshwater sources will further be impacted with the melting of the icecaps and glaciers, in which 68% of the freshwater on Earth is found. Ground water, which makes up 30%, will evaporate.
© Getty Images
7 / 32 Fotos
An impending catastrophe
- In desperation, humans will begin to dilute and desalinate the world's oceans. But this will only serve as a temporary measure against impending catastrophe.
© Getty Images
8 / 32 Fotos
Marine life dwindles
- Meanwhile, marine life will begin to dwindle. Once vibrant corals will bleach and die.
© Getty Images
9 / 32 Fotos
Disrupted food chain
- With no rainfall, more plant life will die—in huge numbers. Such an onslaught will imperil the entire food chain.
© Getty Images
10 / 32 Fotos
Desert conditions
- After just a year without rain, much of the Earth will be experiencing desert conditions.
© Getty Images
11 / 32 Fotos
Meteorological drought
- As the Earth's crust hardens and cracks, a phenomenon called meteorological drought will take place. This is the cumulative effect over time of deficient precipitation and water supply.
© Getty Images
12 / 32 Fotos
Aridity arrives
- As meteorological drought persists, aridity will define much of the planet's topography. The consequences for the environment, agriculture, the economy, health, and society will be devastating.
© Getty Images
13 / 32 Fotos
Worldwide famine
- Famine will sweep across the globe, initiating in regions already beset by hunger before advancing into the industrialized Western world.
© Getty Images
14 / 32 Fotos
Thirst on a global scale
- The search for fresh water will intensify. Mass migration will ensue, resulting in a large number of internally displaced persons and refugees.
© Getty Images
15 / 32 Fotos
Hydrological drought
- By now the world will be experiencing hydrological drought, the decline in precipitation that impacts groundwater recharge, streamflow, soil moisture, and levels in reservoirs and lakes.
© Getty Images
16 / 32 Fotos
Habitats wiped out
- Damage to habitats will be fatal, affecting wildlife in the terrestrial and aquatic ecoregions.
© Getty Images
17 / 32 Fotos
Desertification and erosion
- Intense aridity will whip up mighty dust storms, terrifying in their ferocity. The process of global desertification and erosion will begin.
© Getty Images
18 / 32 Fotos
Rainforests disappear
- Unchecked wildfires stoked by intolerable heat and fanned by relentless winds will destroy the world's rainforests, already bereft of life-giving precipitation.
© Getty Images
19 / 32 Fotos
Water pollution
- What little surface water is left will likely be contaminated by dead animals and human detritus.
© Getty Images
20 / 32 Fotos
Water rationing
- Water companies will have to start rationing supply, and the installation of compulsory water meters will be necessary.
© Getty Images
21 / 32 Fotos
Food shortages
- Food rationing will be enforced across developed nations. In some cases, discontinuation of food sales will be necessary. The price of both food and water will go through the roof.
© Getty Images
22 / 32 Fotos
Reduced power
- Energy costs will spiral. Power produced by hydroelectricity will be especially impacted as reservoirs run dry.
© Getty Images
23 / 32 Fotos
Socioeconomic drought
- A desperate situation will turn even worse as social unrest, conflicts, and wars over natural resources, including water and food, intensify and socioeconomic drought takes hold.
© Getty Images
24 / 32 Fotos
Drought stress
- The onset of drought stress compounded by lack of rainfall will kill off all remaining plant life on a massive scale globally.
© Getty Images
25 / 32 Fotos
Depleted oxygen
- Without plants to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, the air that we breathe will soon be depleted.
© Getty Images
26 / 32 Fotos
Air pollution
- Rising carbon dioxide levels coupled with increased temperatures will make oxygen levels in the air plummet. The Earth will start to die.
© Getty Images
27 / 32 Fotos
Effects on health
- Humanity will eventually be consumed by a global health crisis. Lack of rainfall and toxic air pollution will exacerbate respiratory diseases, and lead to the increase of vector-borne diseases and infections transmitted by water and food. The incidence of ultraviolet radiation at the surface of the Earth will promote the rates of skin diseases, including cancer and ophthalmological lesions.
© Shutterstock
28 / 32 Fotos
Greenhouse gas
- Carbon dioxide currently makes up just 0.04% of Earth's atmosphere, but with no plants to remove it, this deadly greenhouse gas will start to build up to dangerous levels.
© Getty Images
29 / 32 Fotos
The oceans evaporate
- Meanwhile with no rainwater to top them up, oceans, seas, and lakes will continue to evaporate. Eventually every body of water on Earth will be hypersaline and nearly all regular sea creatures would likely have died off.
© Getty Images
30 / 32 Fotos
The Earth dies
- Without abundant and consistent rainfall, most of life on Earth will be extinguished, including us. In fact, our once vibrant and colorful world will be barely recognizable and will effectively be an alien planet, rather like Mars. Sources: (NASA) (National Geographic) (American Meteorological Society) (Vedantu) See also: Mesmerizing photos of Mars
© Getty Images
31 / 32 Fotos
What would happen if it never rained again?
How long would we survive without rainfall?
© Getty Images
Rainfall is essential for life across Earth's landscapes. It's the main source of fresh water for plants and animals, and us. According to Earth Science, the average amount of precipitation falling on the Earth per year is approximately 39 inches (100 cm). Much of that is rainfall as opposed to sleet or snow. And what would happen to our planet if it was suddenly deprived of rain? How would we cope? Could we survive?
Click through and absorb these worrying consequences of a world without rainfall.
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