Rain shadow occurs where a mountain range bars the path of moist winds that blow from a body of water over the land. As the winds rise to cross the mountains, rain falls on the coastal plains and mountain slopes. The dry winds then blow inland, but little rain falls beyond the mountain range. The dry area beyond the mountains is the rain shadow.
Many of the world’s deserts lie in rain shadows. Northeastern Queensland in Australia has a rain shadow west of the Great Dividing Range that receives less than 30 inches (76 centimeters) of rainfall a year. Another rain shadow occurs in New South Wales, where the western slopes are sheltered from rainbearing winds from the east. The Highlands of Scotland create a rain shadow to their east.
