Not all raindrops are created equal. The size of falling raindrops depends on several factors, including where the cloud producing the drops is located on the globe and where the drops originate in the cloud. For the first time, scientists have three-dimensional snapshots of raindrops and snowflakes around the world from space, thanks to the joint NASA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission. With the new global data on raindrop and snowflake sizes this mission provides, scientists can improve rainfall estimates from satellite data and in numerical weather forecast models, helping us better understand and prepare for extreme weather events.

This video is public domain and can be downloaded along with other animated GIFs at: http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/details.cgi?aid=12182

A detailed article supporting this video can be found at: http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/size-matters-nasa-measures-raindrop-sizes-from-space-to-understand-storms