Site Observations

Site 1 is Belem, Brazil. Belem is located on the Northern coast of Brazil, on the coast of the Tocantins river.

Satellite pictures of rainfall per month over the tropics

Observations:
There are patterns of extremly heavy rain during the summer months and patterns of sharp decreases in precipitaion during the winter. 

Site 2 is Manuas, Brazil. Manuas is located extemely close to the equator in the Amazon Basin.

Satellite pictures of rainfall per month over the tropics

Observations:
Heavy rain during the summer months and less during the winter months. However, Pattern isn't as defined as in Belem, Brazil.

Site 2 is Aracaju, Brazil. Aracaju is located in the drought quadrilateral of the Northeastern Coast.

Satellite pictures of rainfall per month over the tropics

Observations:
More rain during summer months than in winter months, however precipitaion levels are much lower than in Belem, or Manuas.

Observations:
From this table, and the graphs from each site, we can see that Precipitation varies in relation to location. There is more rain, and more constant rain at the Manuas site because it is located in the Amazon Basin. The Encyclopedia Britannica states that "in the upper Amazon Basin of South America, the rain forest recycles rains brought primarily by easterly trade winds. Surface transpiration and evaporation supply about half the rainfall for the entire region. In basins of dense forest cover far from the ocean, these local processes can account for most of the local rainfall." The Aracaju is drier than Belem or Manuas because it lies in a drought zone. While Belem gets dramatically high and low rainfall due to its location on the coast, and the influence of winds off of the Atlantic Ocean.

Observations: These satellite images prove that rainfall increases in the summer months , and that it decreases in the winter months.