 |
| Is Giant Hail on the increase? |
A recent headline sparked this article it read "8 killed as severe storms lash northern Myanmar"?
On further investigation this is not the first time this has happened, although at present it is not a common occurrence. It seems with the recent change in the world weather verging on the bizarre, "massive hail" seems to be on the increase, not only in the places you would expect it, but increasingly around the world in places that you would not. It's not quite the headline grabber as say Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Earthquakes or Volcanic eruptions but with recent headlines it begs the question "How large can hail get?"
VID: Insane Giant Hail around the Globe. Is it getting bigger? via The Twelve Gates You Tube
Normal sized hail is the size of a pea or maybe marble sized in the extreme, but the latest hail seems to have jumped up in size with hail the size of a baseball or tennis ball being quite common and hail the size of a grapefruit in rarer cases. These sizes do occur but are more a rarity.
Something that size dropping out of the sky at a rapid rate of knots being rock solid in composition can easily damage vehicles and buildings but also when hail gets that size and travelling at that speed, has the potential to cave your head in and potentially kill people as the previously mentioned headline demonstrates! Walking around in a crash helmet whilst walking the streets becomes a rather mad, laughable but very feasable proposition when these sort of situations occur. With these sot of headlines those sort of thoughts start entering your head, you know that we are living in changing times and more to the point........ something is not quite righ here!
Massive Hail is the new Natural Disaster headline in terms of frequency and deadliness, starting to head up their with the other big natural disasters. Large Hail is nothing new, it's been around for a long time but the larger biblical/apocalyptic stuff is rare, that is until recently. Hail stones originate from a Hail Storm, but what exactly is a Hailstorm and what causes hail to form and why do you get these weird occurrences sometimes in the middle of summer?
What is a hailstorm?
Any thunderstorm which produces hail that reaches the ground is known as a hailstorm. Hail has a diameter of 5 millimetres (0.20 in) or more. Hailstones can grow to 15 centimetres (6 in) and weigh more than 0.5 kilograms (1.1 lb). Unlike ice pellets, hailstones are layered and can be irregular and clumped together.
What causes hail to form?
Hail is caused when raindrops are lifted up into the atmosphere during a thunderstorm and then supercooled by temperatures below freezing, turning them into ice balls, says Dr. Dick Orville of Texas A&M University. "The faster the updraft on these balls of ice, the bigger they can grow," he adds.
Vid: 10 seconds Hail Explainer from CBS11 Dallas Fort Worth from Chief Meteorologist Larry Mowry
El Nino is usually the explanation for such strange biblical or apocalyptic weather, but according to meteorologists we are heading out of El Nino?
What does The Weather Channel have to say? A comprehensive article delves a little bit deeper with some interesting facts:
When it comes to severe weather, tornadoes dominate the headlines and are generally the most feared. This is for good reason as they are one of the most violent weather forces on earth. That said, severe storms also come with other hazards that can be a significant threat to people and property. One of those "underrated dangers" is large hail.
The costliest hailstorm in U.S. history hit the Phoenix metro area on Oct. 5, 2010. As estimated $2.8 billion in damage was caused by that storm, according to NOAA's storm data. Hailstones up to three inches in diameter were measured in the West Chandler area.
Typical damage from hail-
Quarter-size (1 inch) - Damage to shingles
Golf ball (1.75 inches) - Dents on cars
Baseball (2.75 inches) - Windshields smashed
Softball (4.5 inches) - Holes in roofs
What sort of damage can a baseball sized hail do to a person?
According to the National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL), a hailstone the size of a baseball falls at a speed comparable to a baseball thrown from a major league pitcher - near 100 mph. A good indication of why injuries to a person's body from large hail can be so severe.
Giant Hail Deaths
Deaths from Giant Hail are thankfully fairly rare. the deadliest hailstorm occurred on April 30, 1988 in India when 246 people were killed! But see the recent headline only days ago where 8 people died and another in South Africa in Feb 2016 that killed one.
More Hail Facts:
1. Hailstones 98% of the time are golf ball size or smaller
2. The largest ever Hailstone fell in Vivian, S.D. on July 23, 2010. It measured eight inches in diameter and weighed 1.93 pounds
3. Large hail (at least 1 inch in diameter) is most frequently observed firstyl across an area called Hail Alley ranging from Denver to Rapid City, South Dakota, and east into parts of Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri. These areas average more than 10 days per year according to reports from 2003 to 2012.
Secondly Hailstorm Alley is an area of south and central Alberta, Canada where hail storms are frequently produced. These storms frequently produce hail that is damaging to property. This area stretches from High River in southern Alberta, northward through Calgary, through Red Deer to Lacombe and then westward to Rocky Mountain House.
Comforting to know but doesn't explain The Freak Giant Hail in Russia, China, Myanmar, Brazil, Italy and many other places. What The Twelve Gates Website looks for is unusual occurrences and events that are out of the ordinary, occuring more frequently in areas not normally known for such events. Recently there has been increasing occurrences along with increasing size in areas known for hail but not of such a huge size.
Recent News:
Nov 2014: Giant Hail kills 200 in Himalayas via The Telegraph
Sep 2015: Hundreds of flamingos battered to death during giant hailstone storm via The Local ES
June 2015: Sheep herders mourn loss of sheep to giant hail stones via Rapid City Journal
Mar 2016: Violent hail storm kills exotic birds at Fort Worth Zoo in Texas via CBS News
Sep 2015: Baseball-Sized Hail Pummels Parts of Italy This Weekend via Weather.com
A compilation video will be accompanying thia article
Biblical References:
The Bible references hail on many occassions in the Old and New Testament but in relation to End Times Prophecy for our times the Book of Revelations mentions hail three times and twice there is mentioned a Great Hail. Hail doesn't have to be ice, it could be stone or rock or even meteorites! Rev 16:21 even mentions the weight of the hail, a talent. A talent is about 75 pounds or about 33kg! If the prophecy of Revelation is correct, what we are seeing now which is only at maximum a pound or 0.5kg and the damage that can cause, 33kg doesn't bear thinking about. You would need to be in a concrete bunker of some considerable thickness or similar undeground facility to have a chance of survival. Buildings would be flattened if such a hail did arrive in our modern times.
The three Book of Revelations quotes below to ponder over:
Revelation 8:7
The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
Revelation 11:19
And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
Revelation 16:21
And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.
The costliest and deadliest hailstorms around the world History courtesy Wikipedia
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment