It’s not hail or snow – On Monday, the soil is grain.

TOLEDO, Ohio – We’ve seen it before, but what is graupel? The WTOL 11 Weather Team doesn’t often talk about porridge in the forecast, but now that the fall chill has arrived, the potential for cereals exists.

Graupel are soft, small ice pellets that form in a cloud and fall to the surface. The water droplets in the cloud are high enough in the atmosphere that the temperature is below zero, 32 degrees Fahrenheit.

The cold water droplets then collide with the snow crystals in the cloud. When water droplets collide, they cover the snow crystal, which is called trimming. As soon as the snow crystal becomes heavy, it will fall to the ground. However, to be classified as a pellet, the pellet must be less than 0.2 inches.

Because the water has covered the snow crystal, it is soft due to its structure. Because of its soft structure, the cereal is also called soft hail or snow granule. If you touch or touch the cereal, it becomes tender.

Graupel differs from hail in size. In addition, in the initial stages of hail formation, groats are used as a core.

If you have photos of graupel, please share them on the WTOL 11 News app or the WTOL 11 Weather app.

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https://www.wtol.com/article/weather/graupel-unusual-precipitation-could-happen-monday/512-4359e119-9c41-42ad-bf0d-e9989d9e2ef7