Breaking it Down with Brittney - Hail Formation

Hail forms when small clumps of ice, are kept suspended by strong updrafts, get blown through freezing thunderclouds, until they are heavy enough to fall to earth. A majority of large thunderstorms create hail, but the proper conditions must be present for the hailstones to grow large, freeze solid and then survive until they reach the ground. In the video above, Meteorologist Brittney Merlot explains exactly how a hailstone grows to these different sizes and why there are specific hail criteria that make a thunderstorm "severe warned".