Several questions about rain?

Question

I live in Texas USA where we have been experiencing frequent rain for many days. Today, I was watching the rain fall from the clouds in the distance. I could actually see the water falling at an angle from the clouds as they were moved along by the gentle wind.

What holds all that water in the clouds until it finally falls to the ground?
I mean, that is A LOT of water and must be terribly heavy.
What force holds it up there until it's time to fall?

Why doesn't gravity just pull it down immediately and what determines the moment the rain finally does begin to fall?

???

Why does it fall over a period of several minutes in droplets, instead of just crashing to the ground in one giant deluge in a single moment?

If I remember correctly, water turns into steam at 100°C or 213°F. That is very very hot. Certainly the sun does not heat the water to those temperatures. We would all roast in the process.
What's up with that?

Sorry... I meant 212°F not 213°F


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Answer 1

Clouds are not a constant thing. They are dynamic and constantly developing and going away. So when a cloud reaches the point where rain start to fall it is not happening at all parts of the cloud at the same time. The rain falls from one part of the clouds (usually this is separated vertically) while other parts are developing and yet other parts are decaying. Thus the cloud is not one that is continuous and full of rain. Clouds only form when the air reach the dew point. That is why they mostly do not extend to the ground. The base of the clouds indicate the dew point at a vertical point in the atmosphere. The dew point is where the temp and humidity come to a point of saturation or 100%. Past the dew point the water that has exsisted as a gas now is a liquid and this continues to accumulate until rain starts to fall and remove or balance the accumulation.

Answer 2

What happens is the water molecules get heated up by the sun. Once heated they turn into steam and collect in big clouds in the atmosphere. Eventually these clouds of steam get high enough that they start to hit cold air. When they hit cold air the steam turns back into water and falls down. This is what rain is.