Critical radius for a supercooled spherical seed ($a_c=\Gamma /(T_s-T_{\infty })$)

The Gibbs--Thomson relation depresses a spherical interface's equilibrium temperature by $\Gamma /a$. For $a>a_c$, its interface is warmer than the supercooled ambient and heat loss drives growth. For $a<a_c$, its interface is colder than the ambient and heat gain drives melting. The equilibrium radius is unstable because the derivative of the quasistatic radius velocity at $a_c$ is positive.

In the quasistatic spherical model, ${\eta }_0=a_0/a_c\in (0,1)$. Separating the radius equation gives $t_e=(S/\kappa ){\int }_0^{a_0}{a}^2/(a_c-a)da$, which is finite and evaluates to the displayed expression. Near disappearance, $a^3\sim 3\kappa a_c(t_e-t)/S$. The time diverges logarithmically as the initial radius approaches the critical radius from below.