HailBlue

[[image:hail.jpg width="126" height="290" align="left" caption="Hail varies in sizes, here are 2 pieces of hail that are the size of baseballs."]] Hail
Michael W & Emily C Blue Class Introduction Hail is a form of precipitation in balls of ice that fall from clouds in the sky(3). Meterologists can detect hail by using weather radars to "look" inside a thunderstorm. These radars can detect the energy prior to the red shades that appear on the radar(4). The size of hail is also able to be detected with this radar by the amount of energy being reflected back(4). [|Hail]



Dangers Hailstones can reach speeds of up to 120 MPH, allowing for severe damage. As hail is able to float, it can also lead to floods because it can clog drainage pipes(1). Hail causes a large amount of damage to crops considering they are too heavy for crops to survive the great weights(4). Hail is also strong enough that it can vary between scratching to shattering windows to both homes and cars(5). Hail must be at least 3/4'' in diameter to cause any real harmful damage to houses or cars(2).

Conditions of Formation Hail most commonly ranges from .2 to 4 in size, and forms when raindrops are blown up to a high, cold altitude within a cumulo nimbus cloud, with a temperature of -32 degrees, where it then freezes. Hailstorms usually occur in mostly mountainous regions, but can also happen in many tropical and monsoon regions(2). The size of hail continues to grow each time the raindrop is carried up into the updraft because each time it in pulled back into this draft, the size increases(4). Hail usually falls during or following a thunderstorm. A typical hailstorm can last up to 6 minutes, and though it is very rare, even 15 minutes(2). Hail storms usually occur during the early summer since the surface temperatures are warm enough to promote the instability associated with strong thunderstorms but the upper atmosphere is still cool enough to support ice(3). The largest size of hail usually falls during July and August(5).

Historical Examples The largest hailstorm to date occurred in Aurora, Nebraska, in 2003(2). The city with the most expensive hail damage in the US is Kansas city with the cost of $2 billion(4). The size of the hail in Kansas City weighed nearly 2 pounds and was around 5 1/2" in diameter(5). One of the most dangerous hailstorms occurred on July 7th, 2009, in Yonkers, a suburb in New York. In its wake, it left behind a two inch thick layer of snow and caused a flash flood and one mud slide(2).

Safety During a Hail storm, stay inside if possible but if you are in your car do not run to your home because a car is strong enough to protect you. In either locations of a car or home, lay on the floor face down with your eyes covered so if a window is to break you will not be injured. Also do not use electronics like phones because just like in lighting storms it can cause injuries. If you are to be outside during a hail storm, stay away from lowland areas so the possibility of being swept away by water or deep hail will not exist. If the Hail reaches 3/4" or larger stop driving your car until the storm is over. These Hail storms rarely last 15 minutes and the me dian is 6 minutes which is a short amount of time to sit inside a car or building.(5) [|Hail Storm Precautions]

Sources 1) [|Jane M., What is Hail? Nov. 27 2010. www.allsands.com/science/hail_byw_gm.htm] 2) [|Karen B., Facts About Hailstorms Nov. 27 2010 www.buzzle.com/articles/facts-about-hailstorms.html] 3) Hi-Tech Pointless Dent Removal. Hail Facts. Hi-Tech Pointless Dent Removal. Web. November 23, 2010. [] 4) Weather Forecast Office Columbia.Hail. Weather Forecast Office Columbia. May 5, 2010. Web. November 22, 2010. [] 5) City of Fort colins.Hail Safety Tips.City of Fort Colins. Web. December 1, 2010. []