Ground radars look at the sides of the raindrops and then estimate the vertical and horizontal size. It actually makes a difference when it comes to measuring precipitation, in particular for ground radars. Understanding how a tiny raindrop falls through the atmosphere does more than debunk the myth that a raindrop falls like teardrop. With the invention of high-speed photography we finally saw the most basic elements of our watery planet in action. They are titled 'General Electric, 1949', 'Cloud Physics Laboratory, Michigan Technological University, 2010', and 'Alistair McClymont, Raindrop, 2012'. Science and technology drive each other forward and often lead to insights and discoveries along the way.Ī series of high-speed photographs show raindrops falling. Investigating the processes we can't see with the naked eye is nothing new. The raindrop snaps in the middle where the wind presses up, forming two new spherical balls of water. So the raindrop breaks apart into smaller spherical drops. They cause the ball to push up in the middle and stretch out at the sides.Īs the drop continues to fall and grow, at some point it becomes too large for the surface tension to hold it together. White lines representing the wind are shown under and around the circular ball. The wind-resistance on the underside of the drop causes the bottom of the drop to flatten, resulting in the drop looking like a hamburger bun. These larger raindrops fall through the air faster. The circular ball falls, melding with other balls around it as it descends. As they fall, the raindrop collides with other drops and continues to get bigger. As these droplets grow, they become heavier and start to fall through the air. Small droplets of water in the atmosphere are spherical in shape due to the surface tension, or skin, of the water molecules. Text on screen - 'The Water Cycle.' Arrows forming a circle link pictures of evapotranspiration, condensation, precipitation and runoff together.īut like most things in our world, when we look at the tiny parts that make up the whole, we can learn a lot more about the phenomena.Īnimation of a circular ball of water in the air. Text on screen - 'Runoff.' This is the water cycle, and it describes how our most vital resource moves through the whole Earth system. Water runs off into streams, lakes and oceans, or is stored in the ground or in snowpack. The liquid water then falls back to the surface in the form of rain, snow, ice or hail. Another man stands in a snow-covered field. A man in a business suit stands in the rain at a bus stop. Text on screen - 'Condensation.' Shot of clouds. High in the atmosphere, the water vapour then cools down and condenses from a gas back into a liquid. The sun's heat causes water from plants, lakes and oceans to turn from a liquid to a vapour. Wiggly arrows point up from the water and from the plants towards the sky. Animated flowers and plants sprout from the top.
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