Hail stones grow inside storm clouds as ice layers build up around a frozen core.

The longer version

A hailstone begins as a small frozen particle caught in a powerful updraught inside a storm cloud. Strong upward winds keep carrying it back into cold, wet regions where supercooled water freezes onto its surface, adding one clear or cloudy layer at a time.

Each trip up and down can add another coating, so the stone grows ring by ring until it becomes too heavy for the updraught to hold. Cut open, a large stone usually reveals those rings, rather like growth bands in a tree, recording how many passes it made through the cloud.

Where this entry sits

Clouds, wind, rain, and storms shape daily life in ways that most people barely notice. This collection explains snow, lightning, rainbows, the turning seasons, temperature, the instruments forecasters rely on, and scraps of old weather lore. The full list sits on the Weather and Climate page, where every entry is listed in order.