Massive Hail Fell in Minnesota Monday

A line of severe thunderstorms moved through the Minneapolis area Monday afternoon. Here's a look at the VIPIR RADAR from noon to just after 2 PM. One severe thunderstorm warning was issued after another, following this storm to the northeast. One of the largest hail reports came out of Delano in Wright County. This particular hail stone measured in at 4.00 inches in diameter. Notice the ruler at the bottom of this photo. That's the size of a grapefruit! Several other impressive reports came out of the region Monday with hail ranging from the size of tennis balls to softballs. In order to get hail that big, the updrafts within these storms had to climb up to 100 mph. An updraft is the upward moving air in a thunderstorm. Strong updrafts can support larger hail development. In addition to large hail, there have already been several damaging wind gust reports as well. The threat of severe weather is not over yet. Storms will continue to move through the upper Midwest this evening and then continue overnight for some. Join WeatherNation on-air for live severe weather coverage. -Meteorologist Viki Knapp