Hail in sight: large-scale research to dispel hailstorm myths!

Hail in sight: large-scale research to dispel hailstorm myths!

The current research initiative ICECHIP (In-situ Collaborative Experiment for the Collection of Hail In the Plains) aims to deepen the understanding of hail growth processes. The measurement campaign, which will take place in the Great Plains of the USA from May to June 2025, involves the collaboration of several institutions, including the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). Historically, ICECHIP is the first field campaign in the United States to specifically address hail in over 40 years, underscoring the importance and opportunity of this research. According to the information from KIT Researchers analyze hail-producing thunderstorm systems in order to improve the detection and prediction of hail.

The campaign focuses on several goals: to advance understanding of hail growth in storm clouds, to improve the accuracy of radar-based hail size, and to optimize forecast models. Professor Michael Kunz from KIT emphasizes the challenges associated with solely deriving hail size from radar observations. There is a lack of crucial data about the shape and density of the hailstones.

Campaign objectives and methodology

A central aspect of the ICECHIP campaign is the analysis of hail formation depending on specific environmental conditions. Hail causes over $10 billion in damages in the United States every year, which is why precise forecasts and analysis of hail characteristics are of great importance, the researchers explain icechip.niu.edu.

ICECHIP uses state-of-the-art measurement technology and numerical modeling to collect data on atmospheric conditions and hail size on the ground. Hail probes are used with balloons in the updraft zones of thunderstorms to observe their updraft structures and the movements of the hailstones. In the first week of the campaign, probes were successfully tested in a supercell with updrafts of more than 215 kilometers per hour. Additional data is collected through drone flights that fly over hailstones on the ground for examination.

Research priorities and international collaboration

The campaign focuses on five key research topics to deepen knowledge about hail events:

• Hagelkornwachstum und Fallverhalten
• Hageltrajektorien innerhalb von Stürmen
• Umweltfaktoren, die Hagelprozesse beeinflussen
• Oberflächeneigenschaften von Hagelkörnern
• Radarbeobachtungen zur Verbesserung der Hagelerkennung

The research initiative also calls for the training of 32 bachelor's and 20 master's students from ten US universities. This is done in collaboration with international partners such as the Australian Bureau of Meteorology and the Business and Home Risk Insurance Institution. These collaborations are considered crucial to improving forecasting capabilities and validation of radar-based hail size.

Significance of hail events

The effects of hail are also clearly noticeable in Europe. In Germany, hail causes significant damage to buildings, vehicles and agriculture. At the same time, the German Weather Service (DWD) is working on a comprehensive representation of the spatial distribution of hail events. This is intended to show the nationwide probability of hail events in Germany. Long-term data sets that include radar and observation data as well as insurance industry loss reports form the basis of this presentation, such as DWD notes.

The ICECHIP campaign not only improves the understanding of hail events, but also takes a step towards more precise and effective forecasting methods, which are of great importance for both scientists and people in affected areas.