§1.12#112 δεῖ δὲ λαβεῖν ἅμα καὶ τὰ συμβαίνοντα περὶ τὴν γένεσιν αὐτῆς, τά τε μὴ πλανῶντα καὶ τὰ δοκοῦντʼ εἶναι παράλσγα.
12 We must grasp at the same time the facts that occur concerning its generation, both those which are not misleading and those which seem to be paradoxical.
ἔστι μὲν γὰρ ἡ χάλαζα κρύσταλλος, πήγνυται δὲ τὸ ὕδωρ τοῦ χειμῶνος· αἱ δὲ χάλαζαι γίγνονται ἔαρος μὲν καὶ μετοπώρου μάλιστα, εἶτα δὲ καὶ τῆς ὀπώρας, χειμῶνος δʼ ὀλιγάκις, καὶ ὅταν ἧττον ᾖ ψῦχος.
For hail is ice, and water freezes in winter; but hail occurs chiefly in spring and autumn, and next in late summer, but rarely in winter, and then only when the cold is less.
καὶ ὅλως δὲ γίγνονται χάλαζαι μὲν ἐν τοῖς εὐδιεινοτέροις τόποις, αἱ δὲ χιόνες ἐν τοῖς ψυχροτέροις.
And in general, hail occurs in warmer places, but snow in colder places.
ἄτοπον δὲ καὶ τὸ πήγνυσθαι ὕδωρ ἐν τῷ ἄνω τόπῳ· οὔτε γὰρ παγῆναι δυνατὸν πρὶν γενέσθαι ὕδωρ, οὔτε τὸ ὕδωρ οὐδένα χρόνον οἷόν τε μένειν μετέωρον ὄν.
It is also strange that water should freeze in the upper region; for it is neither possible for it to freeze before becoming water, nor is it possible for water to remain suspended for any length of time.
ἀλλὰ μὴν οὐδʼ ὥσπερ αἱ ψακάδες ἄνω μὲν ὀχοῦνται διὰ μικρότητα, ἐνδιατρίψασαι δʼ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀέρος, ὥσπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ὕδατος γῇ καὶ χρυσὸς διὰ μικρομέρειαν πολλάκις ἐπιπλέουσιν, οὕτως ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀέρος τὸ ὕδωρ, συνελθόντων δὲ πολλῶν μικρῶν μεγάλαι καταφέρονται ψακάδες· τοῦτο γὰρ οὐκ ἐνδέχεται γενέσθαι ἐπὶ τῆς χαλάζης· οὐ γὰρ συμφύεται τὰ πεπηγότα ὥσπερ τὰ ὑγρά.
But indeed, it is not as with raindrops, which are carried upwards because of their smallness and linger in the air (just as earth and gold, because of their minute parts, often float on water, so water floats on air), and then when many small ones come together, large drops are carried down; for this cannot happen in the case of hail, since frozen things do not coalesce like liquids.
δῆλον οὖν ὅτι ἄνω τοσοῦτον ὕδωρ ἔμεινεν· οὐ γὰρ ἄν ἐπάγη τοσοῦτον.
It is clear, therefore, that so much water remained above; for so much would not have frozen otherwise.
τοῖς μὲν οὖν δοκεῖ τοῦ πάθους αἴτιον εἶναι τούτου καὶ τῆς γενέσεως, ὅταν ἀπωσθῇ τὸ νέφος εἰς τὸν ἄνω τόπον μᾶλλον ὄντα ψυχρὸν διὰ τὸ λήγειν ἐκεῖ τὰς ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς τῶν ἀκτίνων ἀνακλάσεις, ἐλθὸν δʼ ἐκεῖ πήγνυσθαι τὸ ὕδωρ· διὸ καὶ θέρους μᾶλλον καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἀλεειναῖς χώραις γίγνεσθαι τὰς χαλάζας, ὅτι ἐπὶ πλέον τὸ θερμὸν ἀνωθεῖ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς τὰς νεφέλας.
To some, then, the cause of this phenomenon and of its generation seems to be when the cloud is thrust up into the upper region, which is colder because the reflections of the rays from the earth end there, and the water freezes when it gets there; for which reason hail occurs more in summer and in warm countries, because the warmth thrusts the clouds further up from the earth.
συμβαίνει δʼ ἐν τοῖς σφόδρα ὑψηλοῖς ἥκιστα γίγνεσθαι χάλαζαν· καίτοι ἔδει, ὥσπερ καὶ τὴν χιόνα ὁρῶμεν ἐπὶ τοῖς ὑψηλοῖς μάλιστα γιγνομένην.
But it happens that hail occurs least in very high places; yet it ought to, just as we see snow occurring most on high places.
ἔτι δὲ πολλάκις ὦπται νέφη φερόμενα σὺν ψόφῳ πολλῷ παῤ αὐτὴν τὴν γῆν, ὥστε φοβερὸν εἶναι τοῖς ἀκούουσιν καὶ ὁρῶσιν ὡς ἐσομένου τινὸς μείζονος.
Moreover, clouds have often been seen carried along close to the earth itself with a great noise, so as to be terrifying to those who hear and see them, as if some greater thing were about to happen.
ὁτὲ δὲ καὶ ἄνευ ψόφου τοιούτων ὀφθέντων νεφῶν χάλαζα γίγνεται πολλὴ καὶ τὸ μέγεθος ἄπιστος, καὶ τοῖς σχήμασιν οὐ στρογγύλη, διὰ τὸ μὴ πολὺν χρόνον γίγνεσθαι τὴν φορὰν αὐτῆς ὡς πλησίον τῆς πήξεως γενομένης τῆς γῆς, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὥσπερ ἐκεῖνοί φασιν.
But sometimes, when such clouds are seen even without noise, much hail occurs, incredible in size and not round in shape, because its fall does not last for a long time as its freezing takes place close to the earth, and not as they say.
ἀλλὰ μὴν ἀναγκαῖον ὑπὸ τοῦ μάλιστʼ αἰτίου τῆς πήξεως μεγάλας γίγνεσθαι χαλάζας· κρύσταλλος γὰρ ἡ χάλαζα, καὶ τοῦτο παντὶ δῆλον.
But indeed, it is necessary that large hail is produced by the cause most responsible for freezing; for hail is ice, and this is clear to everyone.
μεγάλαι δʼ εἰσὶν αἱ τοῖς σχήμασιν μὴ στρσγγύλαι.
And those that are not round in shape are large.
τοῦτο δʼ ἐστὶ σημεῖον τοῦ παγῆναι πλησίον τῆς γῆς· αἱ γὰρ φερόμεναι πόρρωθεν· διὰ τὸ φέρεσθαι μακρὰν περιθραυόμεναι γνονται τό τε σχῆμα περιφερεῖς καὶ τὸ μέγεθος ἐλάττους.
This is a sign of their freezing near the earth; for those carried from afar, because of being carried a long way, become rounded by being broken all around, and smaller in size.