# Floating Water Drops-What Gives?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-water-drops-what-gives/63002>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [April 23, 2001, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-water-drops-what-gives/63002 "2001-04-23T14:58:11Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![egkelly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/db5fbb/32.png) [@egkelly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/egkelly)\
**Post date:** [April 23, 2001, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-water-drops-what-gives/63002/1 "2001-04-23T14:58:11Z")

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Has anybody noticed this? I was watching the rain fall on the hood of my car. The rain drops would splash down, and I would notice that a drop would emerge, and float above the water surface. I know that if you spill water on to a very hot surface, you will see drops of water skitter across the surface, riding on a layer of steam (the Leidenfrost Effect). Obviously, this is not what is happening-is it electrostatic repulsion that does this? Anybody know what it is I’m seeing??

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**Author:** ![VenusProbe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/e495f1/32.png) [@VenusProbe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VenusProbe)\
**Post date:** [April 23, 2001, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floating-water-drops-what-gives/63002/2 "2001-04-23T18:03:46Z")

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surface tension? I have noticed it too, sometimes when it’s raining really hard I’ll see it on the surface of the pond. And no, I don’t know enough to come in out of the rain.