Pardon me for being melodramatic. Think about it, rain drops fall from thousands of feet in the air and yet we hardly twitch when one falls on us.This defies all logic, if you drop a penny from the top of a building and let it fall on you, we know that it hurts!
Have the angels cast a magical spell on the rain drops to spare us from the pain?
Terminal Velocity
When you drop something in air, it does not accelerate forever. Molecules in air constantly bombard with the object, exerting an upward force. This is known as air resistance or drag.
As the object gains velocity there comes a time when the force of the air resistance is enough to balance the force of gravity, so the acceleration stops and the raindrop attains terminal velocity.
Terminal Velocity is the maximum velocity an object can travel in air! For a more detailed explanation, complete with equations visited NASA’s page on terminal velocity.
The Angel’s mystical spell
Rain drops are only 0.5 mm-4 mm in diameter. Their terminal velocity is only about 10 m/s ( 20 mph ) That’s the maximum speed that they can travel in air irrespective of their initial height. Also the mass of the rain drop is about a few milligrams.
Hence, the force that it exerts on the body is really small, small enough that we find the experience pleasurable and soothing.
