Page 323 - General Knowledge from the Qur'an

The Scientific Miracles of the Qur'an 321

In another verse, the following information is given about the for-
mation of rain:
Have you not seen how Allah drives along the clouds, then joins
them together, then makes them into a stack, and then you see
the rain come out of it? And He sends down from the sky moun-
tain masses (of clouds) with cold hail in them, striking with it
anyone He wills and averting it from anyone He wills. The
brightness of His lightning almost blinds the sight. (Surat an-
Nur, 43)
Scientists studying cloud types came across surprising results re-
garding the formation of rain clouds. Rain clouds are formed and
shaped according to definite systems and stages. The formation stages
of cumulonimbus, one kind of rain cloud, are these:
1.STAGE, Being driven along: Clouds are carried along, that is, they
are driven along, by the wind.
2.STAGE, Joining: Then, small clouds (cumulus clouds) driven
along by the wind join together, forming a larger cloud. 6
3.STAGE, Stacking: When the small clouds join together, updrafts
within the larger cloud increase. The updrafts near the centre of the
cloud are stronger than those near the edges. These updrafts cause the
cloud body to grow vertically, so the cloud is stacked up. This vertical
growth causes the cloud body to stretch into cooler regions of the at-
mosphere, where drops of water and hail formulate and begin to grow
larger and larger. When these drops of water and hail become too
heavy for the updrafts to support them, they begin to fall from the
cloud as rain, hail, etc. 7
We must remember that meteorologists have only recently come to
know these details of cloud formation, structure and function, by
using advanced equipment like planes, satellites, computers etc. It is
evident that Allah has given us a piece of information that could not
have been known 1,400 years ago.

THE FECUNDATING WINDS
In one verse of the Qur'an, the "fecundating" characteristic of the
winds, and the formation of rain as a result are mentioned.