Good morning… and welcome to Friday!
Roads are easy to navigate today. I saw no temps worthy of ice concerns, and precipitation was not hap’nin’ when I came DTH. Wind, fog and rocks were not to be found, so other than the pavement still being wet, in summary, the drive is more summery than wintery.
All hail (wait, graupel) Old Man Winter! Even if roads are decent today, in general it’s getting chillier, wetter, and winterier (ouch… I like to invent words, but winterier is not easy on the tongue). Anyhow, yesterday, I mentioned the term, “graupel,” and suggested that it is similar to hail, but vastly different. And, I said that I’d fill you in on more info at another time. Well, welcome to another time!
Now, I’m not a professional weather guy, but I know a little about meteorology, which, ironically, has nothing to do with meteors. Meteor stuff is studied by astronomers, which, oddly, share nothing in common with astrologers (not in any scientific way), and nothing with those who follow the Astros. Those who follow the Astros are called, “sports fans,” which are people who, ironically, tend to be people who do not engage in sports at all, unless eating vast tubs of Cheetos while chugging beer and hollering at the television is considered a sport. But, I digress… back to non-meteor meteorology… the study of the Cosmos (Wait… don’t go thinking that it’s called cosmetology, either, because, it turns out, THAT is all about lipstick, mascara, and blush. I’m really beginning to think that whoever they put in charge of naming scientists and enthusiasts was some sort of mental case… but not a mentalist, of course).
Graupel is sort of like hail, but is light and fluffy by comparison. It’s a lot like those awful styrofoam balls (the ones that stick on you via static electricity), only the graupel ones will eventually melt, unlike the stryofoam ones which will outlive us, our descendents, and possibly even the next two or three types of living things to dominate Earth. Now, hail is relatively solid, and it freakin’ hurts when it strikes you. Hail can get large enough to dent cars, break windows, wreck crops, or even kill ya dead. Graupel, not so much… it’s formed around a snowflake to start with, and anybody who complains about getting hit with a SNOWFLAKE must be a snowflake.
Another difference between hail and graupel is that all thunderstorms are capable of producing hail, even when ground temps seem very warm. I think (but I’m not positive… I’m not some meteorologist, you know!) that the converse is also true: All hail comes only from thunderstorms. Graupel can form anytime that there are snowflakes above, even FAR above.
Now, incidentally, hail is different from ice pellets. Ice pellets are another whole thing entirely, and they thrive when ground temps are cold. Ironically, hail finds it more difficult be hail when ground temps are cold, instead being more apt to be hail when ground temps are warmer. I know… I don’t get it either. Just nod your head when some meteorologist says this stuff to you, and then say, “Oh, sure, Kdog explained it all to us.” This will save you from a long and super boring explanation using scientific words and stuff.
So, it’s nice that there’s no more need to grapple over what the hail the difference is between the two or three types of ice balls. It should be crystal clear now… cloud and clear, so you don’t feel like a nimbus when Dallas Raines or Evelyn Taft are talking all sciency.
.