| Largest Drop Size | Updraft Velocity to Keep Drop Aloft | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud Type | mm | in | cm/sec | miles/hr | inches/sec |
| Cumulonimbus | 0.076 | 0.003 | 9 | 0.20 | 3.52 |
| Towering Cumulus | 0.067 | 0.003 | 6 | 0.13 | 2.29 |
| Fair Wx Cumulus | 0.016 | 0.0006 | 0.4 | 0.009 | 0.16 |
| Altocumulus | 0.010 | 0.0004 | 0.2 | 0.004 | 0.07 |
| Stratocumulus | 0.008 | 0.0003 | 0.07 | 0.002 | 0.03 |
| Nimbostratus | 0.043 | 0.002 | 5 | 0.11 | 1.94 |
Sources:
R.R. Rogers, A Short Course in Cloud Physics, 2 ed. Pergamon Press, 1979
H. Byers, General Meteorology, 3 ed.McGraw-Hill, 1959
H.R. Pruppacher, Microstructure of Atmospheric Clouds and Precipitation,
in Clouds: Their Formation, Optical Properties and Effects, P. Hobbs and A. Deepak, eds.,Academic Press, 1981.