Myth of raindrop formation exploded

“Myth” may be overstating it, which is par for the course. But someone actually observed what happens to large raindrops, to see why we get the distribution of raindrop sizes.

The pair got the idea from the unusual but well known transformations of fuel droplets travelling at high speed in diesel engines. As they travel, drops flatten from a sphere into a pancake-like disc; this catches passing air and inflates like a liquid parachute that eventually explodes in a shower of smaller droplets.