About Hailstorm:
- Hail is a type of solid rain made up of balls or lumps of ice.
- Storms that produce hail which reaches the ground are known as hailstorms.
- Conditions for Hailstorms to occur?
- Highly developed Cumulonimbus clouds need to be present. These are the massive anvil or mushroom-shaped clouds that are seen during thunderstorms which can reach heights up to 65,000 feet.
- There must be strong currents of air ascending through these clouds. These currents are commonly known as updrafts.
- The clouds will need to contain high concentrations of supercooled liquid water.
- How are Hails formed?
- It begins as a water droplet that is swept up by an updraft inside of a thundercloud.
- Other supercooled water droplets which are already present inside the cloud will adhere to the water droplet’s surface, forming layers of ice around it.
- As the water droplet reaches higher elevations within the cloud, it comes into contact with more and more supercooled particles.
- The hail embryo will grow larger and larger as it reaches higher altitudes in the updraft.
- Finally, it will reach a size and weight where gravity will begin to act on it and pull it down.
Q1) What is a Sleet?
Sleet is defined as pellets of ice that fall as a form of precipitation.Sleet is a type of precipitation distinct from snow, hail, and freezing rain. Sleet occurs when falling snow melts and then refreezes before it hits the ground.
Source: Sudden rain, hailstorm damage crops in Madhya Pradesh; CM orders survey
Last updated on June, 2025
→ UPSC Notification 2025 was released on 22nd January 2025.
→ UPSC Prelims Result 2025 is out now for the CSE held on 25 May 2025.
→ UPSC Prelims Question Paper 2025 and Unofficial Prelims Answer Key 2025 are available now.
→ UPSC Calendar 2026 is released on 15th May, 2025.
→ The UPSC Vacancy 2025 were released 1129, out of which 979 were for UPSC CSE and remaining 150 are for UPSC IFoS.
→ UPSC Mains 2025 will be conducted on 22nd August 2025.
→ UPSC Prelims 2026 will be conducted on 24th May, 2026 & UPSC Mains 2026 will be conducted on 21st August 2026.
→ The UPSC Selection Process is of 3 stages-Prelims, Mains and Interview.
→ UPSC Result 2024 is released with latest UPSC Marksheet 2024. Check Now!
→ UPSC Toppers List 2024 is released now. Shakti Dubey is UPSC AIR 1 2024 Topper.
→ Also check Best IAS Coaching in Delhi