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Effect of a rain shadow The Tibetan Plateau (center) is an example of a rain shadow. Rainfalls from the southern South Asian monsoon do not make it far past the Himalayas (seen by the snow line at the bottom), leading to an arid climate on the leeward (in this case, north) side of the mountain range and the desertification of the Tarim Basin (top).
A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side.