Heaviest hailstone

What to remember

On 14 April 1986, a hailstone weighing 1.02 kg fell in Gopalganj District, Bangladesh. No weighed hailstone has gone beyond that mass.

To see how far off the norm that is, it helps to know what hail is. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice called hailstones, which usually measure between 5 mm and 15 cm across. Hail forms in cumulonimbus clouds, where strong updrafts lift very humid air that freezes as it rises, and it is possible during most thunderstorms. Hail showers are short and hit only a narrow strip under the storm.