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Show Ilistones: How Big? Is it true that hailstones sometimes get as big as ! oranges? What makes big hailstones and why does hail fall during a thunderstorm? THE ANSWER to the first question is yes. Many of the so-called tall tales one hears about big hailstones are probably closer to the truth i than the listener realizes. ! Hail is usually formed in J thunderheads because these ! storm clouds contain very j strong up-drafts and down-drafts. down-drafts. Rain droplets begin to fall, are caught by an updraft and suddenly carried to an altitude where the temperature tempera-ture is below freezing. The rain droplets freeze into hail. THEY FALL again, picking up moisture as they reenter the rain area, but are sent aloft by another up-draft where the moisture added since the first freeze is frozen to the center core. The process of fall and ascent is sometimes carried on several times; the hailstones growing larger with each trip upward. The stronger the up-drafts in the thunderhead; the larger hail is likely to be. |