Raindrops

[petrushka.googol]

Why do raindrops take their typical pear shape?

 

Please provide some insight.

[swansont]

They don't.

 

http://weather.about.com/od/cloudsandprecipitation/a/rainburgers.htm

http://pmm.nasa.gov/education/articles/shape-of-a-raindrop

[Phi for All]

Teardrops are the imagery I've always heard, not pears. I think lots of folks associate rain with sadness and melancholy.

 

Rain makes me happy, like the tasty brioche bun whose shape they share.

 

[MigL]

I always thought they were 'molded' in that shape by the streamlines of the medium they are falling through.

But if they're not 'teardrop' shape, I guess I'm wrong.

( Don't tell me actual teardrops aren't that shape either )

[Phi for All]

( Don't tell me actual teardrops aren't that shape either )

 

I think they're only that shape just before they fall off an eyelash. They round out when falling. I'm sure they'd assume true raindrop shape if they fell far enough.

 

I hope this isn't off-topic for the discussion, since this is more about what happens when water hits rather than when it's falling, but I found this very interesting:

 

[Strange]

Maybe we think they are that shape from watching them run down windows...