{"podcast":{"title":"EarthDate","slug":"earthdate-7713094","podcast_index_feed_id":7713094,"rss_url":"https://feeds.blubrry.com/feeds/3957418.xml","website_url":"http://blubrry.com/3957418/","image_url":"https://assets.blubrry.com/coverart/1400/3957418-201603.jpg","author":"Switch Energy Alliance","episode_count":300,"summary":"EarthDate is a short-format weekly audio program delivering concise, science-based stories about the Earth: its geology, environments, and the processes that shape our planet over deep time and today. Beginning in 2026, EarthDate is managed by Switch Energy Alliance and hosted by SEA's founder Dr. Scott W. Tinker. Together, we explore earth systems, natural resources, and their relevance to everyday life, with a focus on clear, accessible science education for broad audiences. EarthDate is written and directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Harry Lynch, and researched by Lynn Kistler. We search for captivating stories to remind listeners that science can enlighten, educate and entertain.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/earthdate-7713094"},"episode":{"title":"Raising Hail","slug":"raising-hail","published_at":"2026-05-10T14:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/earthdate-7713094/raising-hail","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/earthdate-7713094","url":"https://blubrry.com/3957418/153852820/raising-hail/","audio_url":"https://media.blubrry.com/3957418/content.blubrry.com/3957418/EarthDate_S13_E24.mp3","summary":"Hail is created when rain starts falling up. This usually happens in the spring, in middle latitudes, when tall clouds form over warm updrafts. In the cold upper reaches of the cloud, water condenses around nuclei, like dust particles, dirt, or salt crystals, to form droplets of rain that begin to fall to Earth...but then are pushed back upwards by the updraft. The rain droplets tumble within the cold center of the cloud, falling down and being pushed back up repeatedly, where they collide with other droplets and begin to freeze, turning into tiny hailstones. More water droplets and water vapor freeze around them, and the hail grows in size and weight. If the updraft is strong, the hail will continue to be suspended in the middle of the cloud, growing until it’s too heavy to stay aloft. When the hailstones do fall, they can be destructive. Small hail weighs less than an ounce. But even that can cause billions of dollars in damage, pummeling crops, denting cars, and destroying roofs. However, hail as large as a softball has been reported, falling at more than 100 miles an hour. Giant hailstones like this have occasionally even killed people. So, if you see hail larger than golf balls falling, take shelter underground, or inside a building away from windows, which can break. Because, while a little water never hurt anyone, it can be dangerous as hail.","meta_description":"Hail is created when rain starts falling up. This usually happens in the spring, in middle latitudes, when tall clouds form over warm updrafts. In the col…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":120,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/earthdate-7713094/episodes/raising-hail/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/earthdate-7713094/raising-hail.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}