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Thunderstorm

A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning[1] and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder.[2] Relatively weak thunderstorms are sometimes called thundershowers.[3] Thunderstorms occur in a type of cloud known as a cumulonimbus.[4] They are usually accompanied by strong winds[1] and often produce heavy rain[1] and sometimes snow, sleet, or hail,[1] but some thunderstorms produce little precipitation or no precipitation at all. Thunderstorms may line up in a series or become a rainband, known as a squall line. Strong or severe thunderstorms include some of the most dangerous weather phenomena, including large hail, strong winds, and tornadoes. Some of the most persistent severe thunderstorms, known as supercells, rotate as do cyclones. While most thunderstorms move with the mean wind flow through the layer of the troposphere that they occupy, vertical wind shear sometimes causes a deviation in their course at a right angle to the wind shear direction.

Thunderstorm
A typical thunderstorm over a field
Area of occurrencePrimarily tropical and also temperate regions.
SeasonMost common in spring and summer. (in temperate regions)
Common in wet season. (in tropical regions)
EffectDepends on the storm, may involve rain, hail, and/or high winds. May cause flooding or fires.
Summer thunderstorm in the woods

Thunderstorms result from the rapid upward movement of warm, moist air, sometimes along a front.[5] However, some kind of cloud forcing, whether it is a front, shortwave trough, or another system is needed for the air to rapidly accelerate upward. As the warm, moist air moves upward, it cools, condenses,[5] and forms a cumulonimbus cloud that can reach heights of over 20 kilometres (12 mi). As the rising air reaches its dew point temperature, water vapor condenses into water droplets or ice, reducing pressure locally within the thunderstorm cell. Any precipitation falls the long distance through the clouds towards the Earth's surface. As the droplets fall, they collide with other droplets and become larger. The falling droplets create a downdraft as it pulls cold air with it, and this cold air spreads out at the Earth's surface, occasionally causing strong winds that are commonly associated with thunderstorms.

Thunderstorms can form and develop in any geographic location but most frequently within the mid-latitude, where warm, moist air from tropical latitudes collides with cooler air from polar latitudes.[6] Thunderstorms are responsible for the development and formation of many severe weather phenomena, which can be potentially hazardous. Damage that results from thunderstorms is mainly inflicted by downburst winds, large hailstones, and flash flooding caused by heavy precipitation. Stronger thunderstorm cells are capable of producing tornadoes and waterspouts.

There are three types of thunderstorms: single-cell, multi-cell, and supercell.[7] Supercell thunderstorms are the strongest and most severe.[7] Mesoscale convective systems formed by favorable vertical wind shear within the tropics and subtropics can be responsible for the development of hurricanes. Dry thunderstorms, with no precipitation, can cause the outbreak of wildfires from the heat generated from the cloud-to-ground lightning that accompanies them. Several means are used to study thunderstorms: weather radar, weather stations, and video photography. Past civilizations held various myths concerning thunderstorms and their development as late as the 18th century. Beyond the Earth's atmosphere, thunderstorms have also been observed on the planets of Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and, probably, Venus.

Life cycle

 
Stages of a thunderstorm's life

Warm air has a lower density than cool air, so warmer air rises upwards and cooler air will settle at the bottom[8] (this effect can be seen with a hot air balloon).[9] Clouds form as relatively warmer air, carrying moisture, rises within cooler air. The moist air rises, and, as it does so, it cools and some of the water vapor in that rising air condenses.[10] When the moisture condenses, it releases energy known as latent heat of condensation, which allows the rising packet of air to cool less than the cooler surrounding air[11] continuing the cloud's ascension. If enough instability is present in the atmosphere, this process will continue long enough for cumulonimbus clouds to form and produce lightning and thunder. Meteorological indices such as convective available potential energy (CAPE) and the lifted index can be used to assist in determining potential upward vertical development of clouds.[12] Generally, thunderstorms require three conditions to form:

  1. Moisture
  2. An unstable airmass
  3. A lifting force (heat)

All thunderstorms, regardless of type, go through three stages: the developing stage, the mature stage, and the dissipation stage.[13][14] The average thunderstorm has a 24 km (15 mi) diameter. Depending on the conditions present in the atmosphere, each of these three stages take an average of 30 minutes.[15]

Developing stage

 
A cumulus congestus' transformation into a mature cumulonimbus incus

The first stage of a thunderstorm is the cumulus stage or developing stage. During this stage, masses of moisture are lifted upwards into the atmosphere. The trigger for this lift can be solar illumination, where the heating of the ground produces thermals, or where two winds converge forcing air upwards, or where winds blow over terrain of increasing elevation. The moisture carried upward cools into liquid drops of water due to lower temperatures at high altitude, which appear as cumulus clouds. As the water vapor condenses into liquid, latent heat is released, which warms the air, causing it to become less dense than the surrounding, drier air. The air tends to rise in an updraft through the process of convection (hence the term convective precipitation). This process creates a low-pressure zone within and beneath the forming thunderstorm. In a typical thunderstorm, approximately 500 million kilograms of water vapor are lifted into the Earth's atmosphere.[16]

Mature stage

 
Anvil-shaped thundercloud in the mature stage

In the mature stage of a thunderstorm, the warmed air continues to rise until it reaches an area of warmer air and can rise no farther. Often this 'cap' is the tropopause. The air is instead forced to spread out, giving the storm a characteristic anvil shape. The resulting cloud is called cumulonimbus incus. The water droplets coalesce into larger and heavier droplets and freeze to become ice particles. As these fall, they melt to become rain. If the updraft is strong enough, the droplets are held aloft long enough to become so large that they do not melt completely but fall as hail. While updrafts are still present, the falling rain drags the surrounding air with it, creating downdrafts as well. The simultaneous presence of both an updraft and a downdraft marks the mature stage of the storm and produces cumulonimbus clouds. During this stage, considerable internal turbulence can occur, which manifests as strong winds, severe lightning, and even tornadoes.[17]

Typically, if there is little wind shear, the storm will rapidly enter the dissipating stage and 'rain itself out',[14] but, if there is sufficient change in wind speed or direction, the downdraft will be separated from the updraft, and the storm may become a supercell, where the mature stage can sustain itself for several hours.[18]

Dissipating stage

 
A thunderstorm in an environment with no winds to shear the storm or blow the anvil in any one direction
 
Flanking line in front of a dissipating cumulonimbus incus cloud

In the dissipation stage, the thunderstorm is dominated by the downdraft. If atmospheric conditions do not support super cellular development, this stage occurs rather quickly, approximately 20–30 minutes into the life of the thunderstorm. The downdraft will push down out of the thunderstorm, hit the ground and spread out. This phenomenon is known as a downburst. The cool air carried to the ground by the downdraft cuts off the inflow of the thunderstorm, the updraft disappears and the thunderstorm will dissipate. Thunderstorms in an atmosphere with virtually no vertical wind shear weaken as soon as they send out an outflow boundary in all directions, which then quickly cuts off its inflow of relatively warm, moist air, and kills the thunderstorm's further growth.[19] The downdraft hitting the ground creates an outflow boundary. This can cause downbursts, a potential hazardous condition for aircraft to fly through, as a substantial change in wind speed and direction occurs, resulting in a decrease of airspeed and the subsequent reduction in lift for the aircraft. The stronger the outflow boundary is, the stronger the resultant vertical wind shear becomes.[20]

Classification

 
Conditions favorable for thunderstorm types and complexes

There are four main types of thunderstorms: single-cell, multi-cell, squall line (also called multi-cell line) and supercell.[7] Which type forms depends on the instability and relative wind conditions at different layers of the atmosphere ("wind shear"). Single-cell thunderstorms form in environments of low vertical wind shear and last only 20–30 minutes.

Organized thunderstorms and thunderstorm clusters/lines can have longer life cycles as they form in environments of significant vertical wind shear, normally greater than 25 knots (13 m/s) in the lowest 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) of the troposphere,[21] which aids the development of stronger updrafts as well as various forms of severe weather. The supercell is the strongest of the thunderstorms,[7] most commonly associated with large hail, high winds, and tornado formation. Precipitable water values of greater than 31.8 millimetres (1.25 in) favor the development of organized thunderstorm complexes.[22] Those with heavy rainfall normally have precipitable water values greater than 36.9 millimetres (1.45 in).[23] Upstream values of CAPE of greater than 800 J/kg are usually required for the development of organized convection.[24]

Single-cell

 
A single-cell thunderstorm over Wagga Wagga

This term technically applies to a single thunderstorm with one main updraft. Also known as air-mass thunderstorms, these are the typical summer thunderstorms in many temperate locales. They also occur in the cool unstable air that often follows the passage of a cold front from the sea during winter. Within a cluster of thunderstorms, the term "cell" refers to each separate principal updraft. Thunderstorm cells occasionally form in isolation, as the occurrence of one thunderstorm can develop an outflow boundary that sets up new thunderstorm development. Such storms are rarely severe and are a result of local atmospheric instability; hence the term "air mass thunderstorm". When such storms have a brief period of severe weather associated with them, it is known as a pulse severe storm. Pulse severe storms are poorly organized and occur randomly in time and space, making them difficult to forecast. Single-cell thunderstorms normally last 20–30 minutes.[15]

Multi-cell clusters

 
A group of thunderstorms over Brazil photographed by the Space Shuttle Challenger

This is the most common type of thunderstorm development. Mature thunderstorms are found near the center of the cluster, while dissipating thunderstorms exist on their downwind side. Multicell storms form as clusters of storms but may then evolve into one or more squall lines. While each cell of the cluster may only last 20 minutes, the cluster itself may persist for hours at a time. They often arise from convective updrafts in or near mountain ranges and linear weather boundaries, such as strong cold fronts or troughs of low pressure. These type of storms are stronger than the single-cell storm, yet much weaker than the supercell storm. Hazards with the multicell cluster include moderate-sized hail, flash flooding, and weak tornadoes.[15]

Multicell lines

A squall line is an elongated line of severe thunderstorms that can form along or ahead of a cold front.[25][26] In the early 20th century, the term was used as a synonym for cold front.[27] The squall line contains heavy precipitation, hail, frequent lightning, strong straight line winds, and possibly tornadoes and waterspouts.[28] Severe weather in the form of strong straight-line winds can be expected in areas where the squall line itself is in the shape of a bow echo, within the portion of the line that bows out the most.[29] Tornadoes can be found along waves within a line echo wave pattern, or LEWP, where mesoscale low pressure areas are present.[30] Some bow echoes in the summer are called derechos, and move quite fast through large sections of territory.[31] On the back edge of the rain shield associated with mature squall lines, a wake low can form, which is a mesoscale low pressure area that forms behind the mesoscale high pressure system normally present under the rain canopy, which are sometimes associated with a heat burst.[32] This kind of storm is also known as "Wind of the Stony Lake" (simplified Chinese: 石湖风; traditional Chinese: 石湖風; shi2 hu2 feng1) in southern China.[33]

Supercells

 
A drone photograph of a supercell from Chamberlain, South Dakota on July 18, 2023.
 
The setting sun illuminates the top of a classic anvil-shaped thunderstorm cloud in eastern Nebraska, United States.

Supercell storms are large, usually severe, quasi-steady-state storms that form in an environment where wind speed or wind direction varies with height ("wind shear"), and they have separate downdrafts and updrafts (i.e., where its associated precipitation is not falling through the updraft) with a strong, rotating updraft (a "mesocyclone"). These storms normally have such powerful updrafts that the top of the supercell storm cloud (or anvil) can break through the troposphere and reach into the lower levels of the stratosphere. Supercell storms can be 24 kilometres (15 mi) wide. Research has shown that at least 90 percent of supercells cause severe weather.[18] These storms can produce destructive tornadoes, extremely large hailstones (10 centimetres or 4 inches diameter), straight-line winds in excess of 130 km/h (81 mph), and flash floods. In fact, research has shown that most tornadoes occur from this type of thunderstorm.[34] Supercells are generally the strongest type of thunderstorm.[15]

Severe thunderstorms

In the United States, a thunderstorm is classed as severe if winds reach at least 93 kilometres per hour (58 mph), hail is 25 millimetres (1 in) in diameter or larger, or if funnel clouds or tornadoes are reported.[35][36][37] Although a funnel cloud or tornado indicates a severe thunderstorm, a tornado warning is issued in place of a severe thunderstorm warning. A severe thunderstorm warning is issued if a thunderstorm becomes severe, or will soon turn severe. In Canada, a rainfall rate greater than 50 millimetres (2 in) in one hour, or 75 millimetres (3 in) in three hours, is also used to indicate severe thunderstorms.[38] Severe thunderstorms can occur from any type of storm cell. However, multicell, supercell, and squall lines represent the most common forms of thunderstorms that produce severe weather.[18]

Mesoscale convective systems

 
MCC moving through the Great Lakes region: on 13 June 2022 at 18:45 UTC

A mesoscale convective system (MCS) is a complex of thunderstorms that becomes organized on a scale larger than the individual thunderstorms but smaller than extratropical cyclones, and normally persists for several hours or more.[39] A mesoscale convective system's overall cloud and precipitation pattern may be round or linear in shape, and include weather systems such as tropical cyclones, squall lines, lake-effect snow events, polar lows, and mesoscale convective complexes (MCCs), and they generally form near weather fronts. Most mesoscale convective systems develop overnight and continue their lifespan through the next day.[14] They tend to form when the surface temperature varies by more than 5 °C (9 °F) between day and night.[40] The type that forms during the warm season over land has been noted across North America, Europe, and Asia, with a maximum in activity noted during the late afternoon and evening hours.[41][42]

Forms of MCS that develop in the tropics are found in use either the Intertropical Convergence Zone or monsoon troughs, generally within the warm season between spring and fall. More intense systems form over land than over water.[43][44] One exception is that of lake-effect snow bands, which form due to cold air moving across relatively warm bodies of water, and occurs from fall through spring.[45] Polar lows are a second special class of MCS. They form at high latitudes during the cold season.[46] Once the parent MCS dies, later thunderstorm development can occur in connection with its remnant mesoscale convective vortex (MCV).[47] Mesoscale convective systems are important to the United States rainfall climatology over the Great Plains since they bring the region about half of their annual warm season rainfall.[48]

Motion

 
Thunderstorm line viewed in reflectivity (dBZ) on a plan position indicator radar display

The two major ways thunderstorms move are via advection of the wind and propagation along outflow boundaries towards sources of greater heat and moisture. Many thunderstorms move with the mean wind speed through the Earth's troposphere, the lowest 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) of the Earth's atmosphere. Weaker thunderstorms are steered by winds closer to the Earth's surface than stronger thunderstorms, as the weaker thunderstorms are not as tall. Organized, long-lived thunderstorm cells and complexes move at a right angle to the direction of the vertical wind shear vector. If the gust front, or leading edge of the outflow boundary, races ahead of the thunderstorm, its motion will accelerate in tandem. This is more of a factor with thunderstorms with heavy precipitation (HP) than with thunderstorms with low precipitation (LP). When thunderstorms merge, which is most likely when numerous thunderstorms exist in proximity to each other, the motion of the stronger thunderstorm normally dictates the future motion of the merged cell. The stronger the mean wind, the less likely other processes will be involved in storm motion. On weather radar, storms are tracked by using a prominent feature and tracking it from scan to scan.[18]

Back-building thunderstorm

A back-building thunderstorm, commonly referred to as a training thunderstorm, is a thunderstorm in which new development takes place on the upwind side (usually the west or southwest side in the Northern Hemisphere), such that the storm seems to remain stationary or propagate in a backward direction. Though the storm often appears stationary on radar, or even moving upwind, this is an illusion. The storm is really a multi-cell storm with new, more vigorous cells that form on the upwind side, replacing older cells that continue to drift downwind.[49][50] When this happens, catastrophic flooding is possible. In Rapid City, South Dakota, in 1972, an unusual alignment of winds at various levels of the atmosphere combined to produce a continuously training set of cells that dropped an enormous quantity of rain upon the same area, resulting in devastating flash flooding.[51] A similar event occurred in Boscastle, England, on 16 August 2004,[52] and over Chennai on 1 December 2015.[53]

Hazards

Each year, many people are killed or seriously injured by severe thunderstorms despite the advance warning[citation needed]. While severe thunderstorms are most common in the spring and summer, they can occur at just about any time of the year.

Cloud-to-ground lightning

 
A return stroke, cloud-to-ground lightning strike during a thunderstorm

Cloud-to-ground lightning frequently occurs within the phenomena of thunderstorms and have numerous hazards towards landscapes and populations. One of the more significant hazards lightning can pose is the wildfires they are capable of igniting.[54] Under a regime of low precipitation (LP) thunderstorms, where little precipitation is present, rainfall cannot prevent fires from starting when vegetation is dry as lightning produces a concentrated amount of extreme heat.[55] Direct damage caused by lightning strikes occurs on occasion.[56] In areas with a high frequency for cloud-to-ground lightning, like Florida, lightning causes several fatalities per year, most commonly to people working outside.[57]

Acid rain is also a frequent risk produced by lightning. Distilled water has a neutral pH of 7. "Clean" or unpolluted rain has a slightly acidic pH of about 5.2, because carbon dioxide and water in the air react together to form carbonic acid, a weak acid (pH 5.6 in distilled water), but unpolluted rain also contains other chemicals.[58] Nitric oxide present during thunderstorm phenomena,[59] caused by the oxidation of atmospheric nitrogen, can result in the production of acid rain, if nitric oxide forms compounds with the water molecules in precipitation, thus creating acid rain. Acid rain can damage infrastructures containing calcite or certain other solid chemical compounds. In ecosystems, acid rain can dissolve plant tissues of vegetations and increase acidification process in bodies of water and in soil, resulting in deaths of marine and terrestrial organisms.[60]

Hail

 
Hailstorm in Bogotá, Colombia

Any thunderstorm that produces hail that reaches the ground is known as a hailstorm.[61] Thunderclouds that are capable of producing hailstones are often seen obtaining green coloration. Hail is more common along mountain ranges because mountains force horizontal winds upwards (known as orographic lifting), thereby intensifying the updrafts within thunderstorms and making hail more likely.[62] One of the more common regions for large hail is across mountainous northern India, which reported one of the highest hail-related death tolls on record in 1888.[63] China also experiences significant hailstorms.[64] Across Europe, Croatia experiences frequent occurrences of hail.[65]

In North America, hail is most common in the area where Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming meet, known as "Hail Alley".[66] Hail in this region occurs between the months of March and October during the afternoon and evening hours, with the bulk of the occurrences from May through September. Cheyenne, Wyoming, is North America's most hail-prone city with an average of nine to ten hailstorms per season.[67] In South America, areas prone to hail are cities like Bogotá, Colombia.

Hail can cause serious damage, notably to automobiles, aircraft, skylights, glass-roofed structures, livestock, and most commonly, farmers' crops.[67] Hail is one of the most significant thunderstorm hazards to aircraft. When hail stones exceed 13 millimetres (0.5 in) in diameter, planes can be seriously damaged within seconds.[68] The hailstones accumulating on the ground can also be hazardous to landing aircraft. Wheat, corn, soybeans, and tobacco are the most sensitive crops to hail damage.[63] Hail is one of Canada's most costly hazards.[69] Hailstorms have been the cause of costly and deadly events throughout history. One of the earliest recorded incidents occurred around the 9th century in Roopkund, Uttarakhand, India.[70] The largest hailstone in terms of maximum circumference and length ever recorded in the United States fell in 2003 in Aurora, Nebraska, United States.[71]

Tornadoes and waterspouts

 
In June 2007, the town of Elie, Manitoba was struck by an F5 tornado.

A tornado is a violent, rotating column of air in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud (otherwise known as a thundercloud) or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. Tornadoes come in many sizes but are typically in the form of a visible condensation funnel, whose narrow end touches the earth and is often encircled by a cloud of debris and dust.[72] Most tornadoes have wind speeds between 40 and 110 mph (64 and 177 km/h), are approximately 75 metres (246 ft) across, and travel several kilometers (a few miles) before dissipating. Some attain wind speeds of more than 300 mph (480 km/h), stretch more than 1,600 metres (1 mi) across, and stay on the ground for more than 100 kilometres (dozens of miles).[73][74][75]

The Fujita scale and the Enhanced Fujita Scale rate tornadoes by damage caused. An EF0 tornado, the weakest category, damages trees but does not cause significant damage to structures. An EF5 tornado, the strongest category, rips buildings off their foundations and can deform large skyscrapers. The similar TORRO scale ranges from a T0 for extremely weak tornadoes to T11 for the most powerful known tornadoes.[76] Doppler radar data, photogrammetry, and ground swirl patterns (cycloidal marks) may also be analyzed to determine intensity and award a rating.[77]

 
Formation of numerous waterspouts in the Great Lakes region (North America)

Waterspouts have similar characteristics as tornadoes, characterized by a spiraling funnel-shaped wind current that form over bodies of water, connecting to large cumulonimbus clouds. Waterspouts are generally classified as forms of tornadoes, or more specifically, non-supercelled tornadoes that develop over large bodies of water.[78] These spiralling columns of air frequently develop within tropical areas close to the equator, but are less common within areas of high latitude.[79]

Flash flood

 
A flash flood caused by a severe thunderstorm

Flash flooding is the process where a landscape, most notably an urban environment, is subjected to rapid floods.[80] These rapid floods occur more quickly and are more localized than seasonal river flooding or areal flooding[81] and are frequently (though not always) associated with intense rainfall.[82] Flash flooding can frequently occur in slow-moving thunderstorms and is usually caused by the heavy liquid precipitation that accompanies it. Flash floods are most common in arid regions as well as densely populated urban environments, where few plants, and bodies of water are present to absorb and contain the extra water. Flash flooding can be hazardous to small infrastructure, such as bridges, and weakly constructed buildings. Plants and crops in agricultural areas can be destroyed and devastated by the force of raging water. Automobiles parked within affected areas can also be displaced. Soil erosion can occur as well, exposing risks of landslide phenomena.

Downburst

 
Trees uprooted or displaced by the force of a downburst wind in northwest Monroe County, Wisconsin

Downburst winds can produce numerous hazards to landscapes experiencing thunderstorms. Downburst winds are generally very powerful, and are often mistaken for wind speeds produced by tornadoes,[83] due to the concentrated amount of force exerted by their straight-horizontal characteristic. Downburst winds can be hazardous to unstable, incomplete, or weakly constructed infrastructures and buildings. Agricultural crops, and other plants in nearby environments can be uprooted and damaged. Aircraft engaged in takeoff or landing can crash.[14][83] Automobiles can be displaced by the force exerted by downburst winds. Downburst winds are usually formed in areas when high pressure air systems of downdrafts begin to sink and displace the air masses below it, due to their higher density. When these downdrafts reach the surface, they spread out and turn into the destructive straight-horizontal winds.[14]

Thunderstorm asthma

Thunderstorm asthma is the triggering of an asthma attack by environmental conditions directly caused by a local thunderstorm. During a thunderstorm, pollen grains can absorb moisture and then burst into much smaller fragments with these fragments being easily dispersed by wind. While larger pollen grains are usually filtered by hairs in the nose, the smaller pollen fragments are able to pass through and enter the lungs, triggering the asthma attack.[84][85][86][87]

Safety precautions

Most thunderstorms come and go fairly uneventfully; however, any thunderstorm can become severe, and all thunderstorms, by definition, present the danger of lightning.[88] Thunderstorm preparedness and safety refers to taking steps before, during, and after a thunderstorm to minimize injury and damage.

Preparedness

Preparedness refers to precautions that should be taken before a thunderstorm. Some preparedness takes the form of general readiness (as a thunderstorm can occur at any time of the day or year).[89] Preparing a family emergency plan, for example, can save valuable time if a storm arises quickly and unexpectedly.[90] Preparing the home by removing dead or rotting limbs and trees, which can be blown over in high winds, can also significantly reduce the risk of property damage and personal injury.[91]

The National Weather Service (NWS) in the United States recommends several precautions that people should take if thunderstorms are likely to occur:[89]

  • Know the names of local counties, cities, and towns, as these are how warnings are described.[89]
  • Monitor forecasts and weather conditions and know whether thunderstorms are likely in the area.[92]
  • Be alert for natural signs of an approaching storm.
  • Cancel or reschedule outdoor events (to avoid being caught outdoors when a storm hits).[92]
  • Take action early so you have time to get to a safe place.[92]
  • Get inside a substantial building or hard-topped metal vehicle before threatening weather arrives.[92]
  • If you hear thunder, get to the safe place immediately.[92]
  • Avoid open areas like hilltops, fields, and beaches, and do not be or be near the tallest objects in an area when thunderstorms are occurring.[89][92]
  • Do not shelter under tall or isolated trees during thunderstorms.[92]
  • If in the woods, put as much distance as possible between you and any trees during thunderstorms.[92]
  • If in a group, spread out to increase the chances of survivors who could come to the aid of any victims from a lightning strike.[92]

Safety

While safety and preparedness often overlap, "thunderstorm safety" generally refers to what people should do during and after a storm. The American Red Cross recommends that people follow these precautions if a storm is imminent or in progress:[88]

  • Take action immediately upon hearing thunder. Anyone close enough to the storm to hear thunder can be struck by lightning.[91]
  • Avoid electrical appliances, including corded telephones.[88] Cordless and wireless telephones are safe to use during a thunderstorm.[91]
  • Close and stay away from windows and doors, as glass can become a serious hazard in high wind.[88]
  • Do not bathe or shower, as plumbing conducts electricity.
  • If driving, safely exit the roadway, turn on hazard lights, and park. Remain in the vehicle and avoid touching metal.[88]

The NWS stopped recommending the "lightning crouch" in 2008 as it does not provide a significant level of protection and will not significantly lower the risk of being killed or injured from a nearby lightning strike.[92][93][94]

 
Thunderstorm near Cuero, Texas

Frequent occurrences

 
Rotating wall cloud in Oklahoma

Thunderstorms occur throughout the world, even in the polar regions, with the greatest frequency in tropical rainforest areas, where they may occur nearly daily. At any given time approximately 2,000 thunderstorms are occurring on Earth.[95] Kampala and Tororo in Uganda have each been mentioned as the most thunderous places on Earth,[96] a claim also made for Singapore and Bogor on the Indonesian island of Java. Other cities known for frequent storm activity include Darwin, Caracas, Manila and Mumbai. Thunderstorms are associated with the various monsoon seasons around the globe, and they populate the rainbands of tropical cyclones.[97] In temperate regions, they are most frequent in spring and summer, although they can occur along or ahead of cold fronts at any time of year.[98] They may also occur within a cooler air mass following the passage of a cold front over a relatively warmer body of water. Thunderstorms are rare in polar regions because of cold surface temperatures.

Some of the most powerful thunderstorms over the United States occur in the Midwest and the Southern states. These storms can produce large hail and powerful tornadoes. Thunderstorms are relatively uncommon along much of the West Coast of the United States,[99] but they occur with greater frequency in the inland areas, particularly the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys of California. In spring and summer, they occur nearly daily in certain areas of the Rocky Mountains as part of the North American Monsoon regime. In the Northeast, storms take on similar characteristics and patterns as the Midwest, but with less frequency and severity. During the summer, air-mass thunderstorms are an almost daily occurrence over central and southern parts of Florida.

Energy

 
How thunderstorms launch particle beams into space

If the quantity of water that is condensed in and subsequently precipitated from a cloud is known, then the total energy of a thunderstorm can be calculated. In a typical thunderstorm, approximately 5×108 kg of water vapor are lifted, and the amount of energy released when this condenses is 1015 joules. This is on the same order of magnitude of energy released within a tropical cyclone, and more energy than that released during the atomic bomb blast at Hiroshima, Japan in 1945.[16]

The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor results show that gamma rays and antimatter particles (positrons) can be generated in powerful thunderstorms.[100] It is suggested that the antimatter positrons are formed in terrestrial gamma-ray flashes (TGF). TGFs are brief bursts occurring inside thunderstorms and associated with lightning. The streams of positrons and electrons collide higher in the atmosphere to generate more gamma rays.[101] About 500 TGFs may occur every day worldwide, but mostly go undetected.

Studies

In more contemporary times, thunderstorms have taken on the role of a scientific curiosity. Every spring, storm chasers head to the Great Plains of the United States and the Canadian Prairies to explore the scientific aspects of storms and tornadoes through use of videotaping.[102] Radio pulses produced by cosmic rays are being used to study how electric charges develop within thunderstorms.[103] More organized meteorological projects such as VORTEX2 use an array of sensors, such as the Doppler on Wheels, vehicles with mounted automated weather stations, weather balloons, and unmanned aircraft to investigate thunderstorms expected to produce severe weather.[104] Lightning is detected remotely using sensors that detect cloud-to-ground lightning strokes with 95 percent accuracy in detection and within 250 metres (820 ft) of their point of origin.[105]

 
Summer storm in 19th century Polish countryside - picture by Jozef Chelmonski, 1896, 107 cm (42.1 in)x163 cm (64.1 in), National Museum in Cracow

Mythology and religion

Thunderstorms strongly influenced many early civilizations. Greeks believed that they were battles waged by Zeus, who hurled lightning bolts forged by Hephaestus. Some American Indian tribes associated thunderstorms with the Thunderbird, who they believed was a servant of the Great Spirit. The Norse considered thunderstorms to occur when Thor went to fight Jötnar, with the thunder and lightning being the effect of his strikes with the hammer Mjölnir. Hinduism recognizes Indra as the god of rain and thunderstorms. Christian doctrine accepts that fierce storms are the work of God. These ideas were still within the mainstream as late as the 18th century.[106]

Martin Luther was out walking when a thunderstorm began, causing him to pray to God for being saved and promising to become a monk.[107]

Outside of Earth

Thunderstorms, evidenced by flashes of lightning, on Jupiter have been detected and are associated with clouds where water may exist as both a liquid and ice, suggesting a mechanism similar to that on Earth. (Water is a polar molecule that can carry a charge, so it is capable of creating the charge separation needed to produce lightning).[108] These electrical discharges can be up to a thousand times more powerful than lightning on the Earth.[109] The water clouds can form thunderstorms driven by the heat rising from the interior.[110] The clouds of Venus may also be capable of producing lightning; some observations suggest that the lightning rate is at least half of that on Earth.[111]

See also

References

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  2. ^ "Weather Glossary – T". National Weather Service. 21 April 2005. Retrieved 23 August 2006.
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Further reading

  • Burgess, D. W., R. J. Donaldson Jr., and P. R. Desrochers, 1993: Tornado detection and warning by radar. The Tornado: Its Structure, Dynamics, Prediction, and Hazards, Geophys. Monogr., No. 79, American Geophysical Union, 203–221.
  • Corfidi, S. F., 1998: Forecasting MCS mode and motion. Preprints 19th Conf. on Severe Local Storms, American Meteorological Society, Minneapolis, Minnesota, pp. 626–629.
  • Davies J. M. (2004). "Estimations of CIN and LFC associated with tornadic and nontornadic supercells". Weather Forecast. 19 (4): 714–726. Bibcode:2004WtFor..19..714D. doi:10.1175/1520-0434(2004)019<0714:eocala>2.0.co;2.
  • Davies, J. M., and R. H. Johns, 1993: Some wind and instability parameters associated with strong and violent tornadoes. Part I: Helicity and mean shear magnitudes. The Tornado: Its Structure, Dynamics, Prediction, and Hazards (C. Church et al., Eds.), Geophysical Monograph 79, American Geophysical Union, 573–582.
  • David, C. L. 1973: An objective of estimating the probability of severe thunderstorms. Preprint Eight conference of Severe Local Storms. Denver, Colorado, American Meteorological Society, 223–225.
  • Doswell C.A., III , Baker D. V., Liles C. A. (2002). "Recognition of negative factors for severe weather potential: A case study". Weather Forecast. 17: 937–954. doi:10.1175/1520-0434(2002)017<0937:ronmff>2.0.co;2.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  • Doswell, C.A., III, S.J. Weiss and R.H. Johns (1993): Tornado forecasting: A review. The Tornado: Its Structure, Dynamics, Prediction, and Hazards (C. Church et al., Eds), Geophys. Monogr. No. 79, American Geophysical Union, 557–571.
  • Johns, R. H., J. M. Davies, and P. W. Leftwich, 1993: Some wind and instability parameters associated with strong and violent tornadoes. Part II: Variations in the combinations of wind and instability parameters. The Tornado: Its Structure, Dynamics, Prediction and Hazards, Geophys. Mongr., No. 79, American Geophysical Union, 583–590.
  • Evans, Jeffry S.,: Examination of Derecho Environments Using Proximity Soundings. NOAA.gov
  • J. V. Iribarne and W.L. Godson, Atmospheric Thermodynamics, published by D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht, the Netherlands, 1973
  • M. K. Yau and R. R. Rogers, Short Course in Cloud Physics, Third Edition, published by Butterworth-Heinemann, 1 January 1989, ISBN 9780750632157 ISBN 0-7506-3215-1

External links

  • Anatomy of a thunderstorm 18 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  • Electronic Journal of Severe Storms Meteorology

thunderstorm, electrical, storm, tstm, redirect, here, other, uses, electrical, storm, disambiguation, musical, ensemble, thirty, seconds, mars, other, uses, disambiguation, thunderstorm, also, known, electrical, storm, lightning, storm, storm, characterized, . Electrical storm and TSTM redirect here For other uses see Electrical storm disambiguation For the musical ensemble see Thirty Seconds to Mars For other uses see Thunderstorm disambiguation A thunderstorm also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning 1 and its acoustic effect on the Earth s atmosphere known as thunder 2 Relatively weak thunderstorms are sometimes called thundershowers 3 Thunderstorms occur in a type of cloud known as a cumulonimbus 4 They are usually accompanied by strong winds 1 and often produce heavy rain 1 and sometimes snow sleet or hail 1 but some thunderstorms produce little precipitation or no precipitation at all Thunderstorms may line up in a series or become a rainband known as a squall line Strong or severe thunderstorms include some of the most dangerous weather phenomena including large hail strong winds and tornadoes Some of the most persistent severe thunderstorms known as supercells rotate as do cyclones While most thunderstorms move with the mean wind flow through the layer of the troposphere that they occupy vertical wind shear sometimes causes a deviation in their course at a right angle to the wind shear direction ThunderstormA typical thunderstorm over a fieldArea of occurrencePrimarily tropical and also temperate regions SeasonMost common in spring and summer in temperate regions Common in wet season in tropical regions EffectDepends on the storm may involve rain hail and or high winds May cause flooding or fires source source Summer thunderstorm in the woodsGood summer thunderstorm source source The sound of a thunderstorm Problems playing this file See media help Spring thunderstorm in suburbs source source The sound of part of a thunderstorm Problems playing this file See media help Thunderstorms result from the rapid upward movement of warm moist air sometimes along a front 5 However some kind of cloud forcing whether it is a front shortwave trough or another system is needed for the air to rapidly accelerate upward As the warm moist air moves upward it cools condenses 5 and forms a cumulonimbus cloud that can reach heights of over 20 kilometres 12 mi As the rising air reaches its dew point temperature water vapor condenses into water droplets or ice reducing pressure locally within the thunderstorm cell Any precipitation falls the long distance through the clouds towards the Earth s surface As the droplets fall they collide with other droplets and become larger The falling droplets create a downdraft as it pulls cold air with it and this cold air spreads out at the Earth s surface occasionally causing strong winds that are commonly associated with thunderstorms Thunderstorms can form and develop in any geographic location but most frequently within the mid latitude where warm moist air from tropical latitudes collides with cooler air from polar latitudes 6 Thunderstorms are responsible for the development and formation of many severe weather phenomena which can be potentially hazardous Damage that results from thunderstorms is mainly inflicted by downburst winds large hailstones and flash flooding caused by heavy precipitation Stronger thunderstorm cells are capable of producing tornadoes and waterspouts There are three types of thunderstorms single cell multi cell and supercell 7 Supercell thunderstorms are the strongest and most severe 7 Mesoscale convective systems formed by favorable vertical wind shear within the tropics and subtropics can be responsible for the development of hurricanes Dry thunderstorms with no precipitation can cause the outbreak of wildfires from the heat generated from the cloud to ground lightning that accompanies them Several means are used to study thunderstorms weather radar weather stations and video photography Past civilizations held various myths concerning thunderstorms and their development as late as the 18th century Beyond the Earth s atmosphere thunderstorms have also been observed on the planets of Jupiter Saturn Neptune and probably Venus Contents 1 Life cycle 1 1 Developing stage 1 2 Mature stage 1 3 Dissipating stage 2 Classification 2 1 Single cell 2 2 Multi cell clusters 2 3 Multicell lines 2 4 Supercells 2 5 Severe thunderstorms 2 6 Mesoscale convective systems 3 Motion 3 1 Back building thunderstorm 4 Hazards 4 1 Cloud to ground lightning 4 2 Hail 4 3 Tornadoes and waterspouts 4 4 Flash flood 4 5 Downburst 4 6 Thunderstorm asthma 5 Safety precautions 5 1 Preparedness 5 2 Safety 6 Frequent occurrences 7 Energy 8 Studies 9 Mythology and religion 10 Outside of Earth 11 See also 12 References 13 Further reading 14 External linksLife cycle nbsp Stages of a thunderstorm s lifeSee also Cloud Warm air has a lower density than cool air so warmer air rises upwards and cooler air will settle at the bottom 8 this effect can be seen with a hot air balloon 9 Clouds form as relatively warmer air carrying moisture rises within cooler air The moist air rises and as it does so it cools and some of the water vapor in that rising air condenses 10 When the moisture condenses it releases energy known as latent heat of condensation which allows the rising packet of air to cool less than the cooler surrounding air 11 continuing the cloud s ascension If enough instability is present in the atmosphere this process will continue long enough for cumulonimbus clouds to form and produce lightning and thunder Meteorological indices such as convective available potential energy CAPE and the lifted index can be used to assist in determining potential upward vertical development of clouds 12 Generally thunderstorms require three conditions to form Moisture An unstable airmass A lifting force heat All thunderstorms regardless of type go through three stages the developing stage the mature stage and the dissipation stage 13 14 The average thunderstorm has a 24 km 15 mi diameter Depending on the conditions present in the atmosphere each of these three stages take an average of 30 minutes 15 Developing stage nbsp A cumulus congestus transformation into a mature cumulonimbus incusThe first stage of a thunderstorm is the cumulus stage or developing stage During this stage masses of moisture are lifted upwards into the atmosphere The trigger for this lift can be solar illumination where the heating of the ground produces thermals or where two winds converge forcing air upwards or where winds blow over terrain of increasing elevation The moisture carried upward cools into liquid drops of water due to lower temperatures at high altitude which appear as cumulus clouds As the water vapor condenses into liquid latent heat is released which warms the air causing it to become less dense than the surrounding drier air The air tends to rise in an updraft through the process of convection hence the term convective precipitation This process creates a low pressure zone within and beneath the forming thunderstorm In a typical thunderstorm approximately 500 million kilograms of water vapor are lifted into the Earth s atmosphere 16 Mature stage nbsp Anvil shaped thundercloud in the mature stageIn the mature stage of a thunderstorm the warmed air continues to rise until it reaches an area of warmer air and can rise no farther Often this cap is the tropopause The air is instead forced to spread out giving the storm a characteristic anvil shape The resulting cloud is called cumulonimbus incus The water droplets coalesce into larger and heavier droplets and freeze to become ice particles As these fall they melt to become rain If the updraft is strong enough the droplets are held aloft long enough to become so large that they do not melt completely but fall as hail While updrafts are still present the falling rain drags the surrounding air with it creating downdrafts as well The simultaneous presence of both an updraft and a downdraft marks the mature stage of the storm and produces cumulonimbus clouds During this stage considerable internal turbulence can occur which manifests as strong winds severe lightning and even tornadoes 17 Typically if there is little wind shear the storm will rapidly enter the dissipating stage and rain itself out 14 but if there is sufficient change in wind speed or direction the downdraft will be separated from the updraft and the storm may become a supercell where the mature stage can sustain itself for several hours 18 Dissipating stage nbsp A thunderstorm in an environment with no winds to shear the storm or blow the anvil in any one direction nbsp Flanking line in front of a dissipating cumulonimbus incus cloudIn the dissipation stage the thunderstorm is dominated by the downdraft If atmospheric conditions do not support super cellular development this stage occurs rather quickly approximately 20 30 minutes into the life of the thunderstorm The downdraft will push down out of the thunderstorm hit the ground and spread out This phenomenon is known as a downburst The cool air carried to the ground by the downdraft cuts off the inflow of the thunderstorm the updraft disappears and the thunderstorm will dissipate Thunderstorms in an atmosphere with virtually no vertical wind shear weaken as soon as they send out an outflow boundary in all directions which then quickly cuts off its inflow of relatively warm moist air and kills the thunderstorm s further growth 19 The downdraft hitting the ground creates an outflow boundary This can cause downbursts a potential hazardous condition for aircraft to fly through as a substantial change in wind speed and direction occurs resulting in a decrease of airspeed and the subsequent reduction in lift for the aircraft The stronger the outflow boundary is the stronger the resultant vertical wind shear becomes 20 Classification nbsp Conditions favorable for thunderstorm types and complexesThere are four main types of thunderstorms single cell multi cell squall line also called multi cell line and supercell 7 Which type forms depends on the instability and relative wind conditions at different layers of the atmosphere wind shear Single cell thunderstorms form in environments of low vertical wind shear and last only 20 30 minutes Organized thunderstorms and thunderstorm clusters lines can have longer life cycles as they form in environments of significant vertical wind shear normally greater than 25 knots 13 m s in the lowest 6 kilometres 3 7 mi of the troposphere 21 which aids the development of stronger updrafts as well as various forms of severe weather The supercell is the strongest of the thunderstorms 7 most commonly associated with large hail high winds and tornado formation Precipitable water values of greater than 31 8 millimetres 1 25 in favor the development of organized thunderstorm complexes 22 Those with heavy rainfall normally have precipitable water values greater than 36 9 millimetres 1 45 in 23 Upstream values of CAPE of greater than 800 J kg are usually required for the development of organized convection 24 Single cell Main article Air mass thunderstorm nbsp A single cell thunderstorm over Wagga WaggaThis term technically applies to a single thunderstorm with one main updraft Also known as air mass thunderstorms these are the typical summer thunderstorms in many temperate locales They also occur in the cool unstable air that often follows the passage of a cold front from the sea during winter Within a cluster of thunderstorms the term cell refers to each separate principal updraft Thunderstorm cells occasionally form in isolation as the occurrence of one thunderstorm can develop an outflow boundary that sets up new thunderstorm development Such storms are rarely severe and are a result of local atmospheric instability hence the term air mass thunderstorm When such storms have a brief period of severe weather associated with them it is known as a pulse severe storm Pulse severe storms are poorly organized and occur randomly in time and space making them difficult to forecast Single cell thunderstorms normally last 20 30 minutes 15 Multi cell clusters Main article Multicellular thunderstorm nbsp A group of thunderstorms over Brazil photographed by the Space Shuttle ChallengerThis is the most common type of thunderstorm development Mature thunderstorms are found near the center of the cluster while dissipating thunderstorms exist on their downwind side Multicell storms form as clusters of storms but may then evolve into one or more squall lines While each cell of the cluster may only last 20 minutes the cluster itself may persist for hours at a time They often arise from convective updrafts in or near mountain ranges and linear weather boundaries such as strong cold fronts or troughs of low pressure These type of storms are stronger than the single cell storm yet much weaker than the supercell storm Hazards with the multicell cluster include moderate sized hail flash flooding and weak tornadoes 15 Multicell lines Main article Squall line See also List of derecho events A squall line is an elongated line of severe thunderstorms that can form along or ahead of a cold front 25 26 In the early 20th century the term was used as a synonym for cold front 27 The squall line contains heavy precipitation hail frequent lightning strong straight line winds and possibly tornadoes and waterspouts 28 Severe weather in the form of strong straight line winds can be expected in areas where the squall line itself is in the shape of a bow echo within the portion of the line that bows out the most 29 Tornadoes can be found along waves within a line echo wave pattern or LEWP where mesoscale low pressure areas are present 30 Some bow echoes in the summer are called derechos and move quite fast through large sections of territory 31 On the back edge of the rain shield associated with mature squall lines a wake low can form which is a mesoscale low pressure area that forms behind the mesoscale high pressure system normally present under the rain canopy which are sometimes associated with a heat burst 32 This kind of storm is also known as Wind of the Stony Lake simplified Chinese 石湖风 traditional Chinese 石湖風 shi2 hu2 feng1 in southern China 33 Supercells Main article Supercell nbsp A drone photograph of a supercell from Chamberlain South Dakota on July 18 2023 nbsp The setting sun illuminates the top of a classic anvil shaped thunderstorm cloud in eastern Nebraska United States Supercell storms are large usually severe quasi steady state storms that form in an environment where wind speed or wind direction varies with height wind shear and they have separate downdrafts and updrafts i e where its associated precipitation is not falling through the updraft with a strong rotating updraft a mesocyclone These storms normally have such powerful updrafts that the top of the supercell storm cloud or anvil can break through the troposphere and reach into the lower levels of the stratosphere Supercell storms can be 24 kilometres 15 mi wide Research has shown that at least 90 percent of supercells cause severe weather 18 These storms can produce destructive tornadoes extremely large hailstones 10 centimetres or 4 inches diameter straight line winds in excess of 130 km h 81 mph and flash floods In fact research has shown that most tornadoes occur from this type of thunderstorm 34 Supercells are generally the strongest type of thunderstorm 15 Severe thunderstorms In the United States a thunderstorm is classed as severe if winds reach at least 93 kilometres per hour 58 mph hail is 25 millimetres 1 in in diameter or larger or if funnel clouds or tornadoes are reported 35 36 37 Although a funnel cloud or tornado indicates a severe thunderstorm a tornado warning is issued in place of a severe thunderstorm warning A severe thunderstorm warning is issued if a thunderstorm becomes severe or will soon turn severe In Canada a rainfall rate greater than 50 millimetres 2 in in one hour or 75 millimetres 3 in in three hours is also used to indicate severe thunderstorms 38 Severe thunderstorms can occur from any type of storm cell However multicell supercell and squall lines represent the most common forms of thunderstorms that produce severe weather 18 Mesoscale convective systems See also Mesoscale convective system nbsp MCC moving through the Great Lakes region on 13 June 2022 at 18 45 UTCA mesoscale convective system MCS is a complex of thunderstorms that becomes organized on a scale larger than the individual thunderstorms but smaller than extratropical cyclones and normally persists for several hours or more 39 A mesoscale convective system s overall cloud and precipitation pattern may be round or linear in shape and include weather systems such as tropical cyclones squall lines lake effect snow events polar lows and mesoscale convective complexes MCCs and they generally form near weather fronts Most mesoscale convective systems develop overnight and continue their lifespan through the next day 14 They tend to form when the surface temperature varies by more than 5 C 9 F between day and night 40 The type that forms during the warm season over land has been noted across North America Europe and Asia with a maximum in activity noted during the late afternoon and evening hours 41 42 Forms of MCS that develop in the tropics are found in use either the Intertropical Convergence Zone or monsoon troughs generally within the warm season between spring and fall More intense systems form over land than over water 43 44 One exception is that of lake effect snow bands which form due to cold air moving across relatively warm bodies of water and occurs from fall through spring 45 Polar lows are a second special class of MCS They form at high latitudes during the cold season 46 Once the parent MCS dies later thunderstorm development can occur in connection with its remnant mesoscale convective vortex MCV 47 Mesoscale convective systems are important to the United States rainfall climatology over the Great Plains since they bring the region about half of their annual warm season rainfall 48 Motion nbsp Thunderstorm line viewed in reflectivity dBZ on a plan position indicator radar displayThe two major ways thunderstorms move are via advection of the wind and propagation along outflow boundaries towards sources of greater heat and moisture Many thunderstorms move with the mean wind speed through the Earth s troposphere the lowest 8 kilometres 5 0 mi of the Earth s atmosphere Weaker thunderstorms are steered by winds closer to the Earth s surface than stronger thunderstorms as the weaker thunderstorms are not as tall Organized long lived thunderstorm cells and complexes move at a right angle to the direction of the vertical wind shear vector If the gust front or leading edge of the outflow boundary races ahead of the thunderstorm its motion will accelerate in tandem This is more of a factor with thunderstorms with heavy precipitation HP than with thunderstorms with low precipitation LP When thunderstorms merge which is most likely when numerous thunderstorms exist in proximity to each other the motion of the stronger thunderstorm normally dictates the future motion of the merged cell The stronger the mean wind the less likely other processes will be involved in storm motion On weather radar storms are tracked by using a prominent feature and tracking it from scan to scan 18 Back building thunderstorm A back building thunderstorm commonly referred to as a training thunderstorm is a thunderstorm in which new development takes place on the upwind side usually the west or southwest side in the Northern Hemisphere such that the storm seems to remain stationary or propagate in a backward direction Though the storm often appears stationary on radar or even moving upwind this is an illusion The storm is really a multi cell storm with new more vigorous cells that form on the upwind side replacing older cells that continue to drift downwind 49 50 When this happens catastrophic flooding is possible In Rapid City South Dakota in 1972 an unusual alignment of winds at various levels of the atmosphere combined to produce a continuously training set of cells that dropped an enormous quantity of rain upon the same area resulting in devastating flash flooding 51 A similar event occurred in Boscastle England on 16 August 2004 52 and over Chennai on 1 December 2015 53 HazardsEach year many people are killed or seriously injured by severe thunderstorms despite the advance warning citation needed While severe thunderstorms are most common in the spring and summer they can occur at just about any time of the year Cloud to ground lightning See also Lightning strike and Wildfire nbsp A return stroke cloud to ground lightning strike during a thunderstormCloud to ground lightning frequently occurs within the phenomena of thunderstorms and have numerous hazards towards landscapes and populations One of the more significant hazards lightning can pose is the wildfires they are capable of igniting 54 Under a regime of low precipitation LP thunderstorms where little precipitation is present rainfall cannot prevent fires from starting when vegetation is dry as lightning produces a concentrated amount of extreme heat 55 Direct damage caused by lightning strikes occurs on occasion 56 In areas with a high frequency for cloud to ground lightning like Florida lightning causes several fatalities per year most commonly to people working outside 57 Acid rain is also a frequent risk produced by lightning Distilled water has a neutral pH of 7 Clean or unpolluted rain has a slightly acidic pH of about 5 2 because carbon dioxide and water in the air react together to form carbonic acid a weak acid pH 5 6 in distilled water but unpolluted rain also contains other chemicals 58 Nitric oxide present during thunderstorm phenomena 59 caused by the oxidation of atmospheric nitrogen can result in the production of acid rain if nitric oxide forms compounds with the water molecules in precipitation thus creating acid rain Acid rain can damage infrastructures containing calcite or certain other solid chemical compounds In ecosystems acid rain can dissolve plant tissues of vegetations and increase acidification process in bodies of water and in soil resulting in deaths of marine and terrestrial organisms 60 Hail Main article Hail nbsp Hailstorm in Bogota ColombiaAny thunderstorm that produces hail that reaches the ground is known as a hailstorm 61 Thunderclouds that are capable of producing hailstones are often seen obtaining green coloration Hail is more common along mountain ranges because mountains force horizontal winds upwards known as orographic lifting thereby intensifying the updrafts within thunderstorms and making hail more likely 62 One of the more common regions for large hail is across mountainous northern India which reported one of the highest hail related death tolls on record in 1888 63 China also experiences significant hailstorms 64 Across Europe Croatia experiences frequent occurrences of hail 65 In North America hail is most common in the area where Colorado Nebraska and Wyoming meet known as Hail Alley 66 Hail in this region occurs between the months of March and October during the afternoon and evening hours with the bulk of the occurrences from May through September Cheyenne Wyoming is North America s most hail prone city with an average of nine to ten hailstorms per season 67 In South America areas prone to hail are cities like Bogota Colombia Hail can cause serious damage notably to automobiles aircraft skylights glass roofed structures livestock and most commonly farmers crops 67 Hail is one of the most significant thunderstorm hazards to aircraft When hail stones exceed 13 millimetres 0 5 in in diameter planes can be seriously damaged within seconds 68 The hailstones accumulating on the ground can also be hazardous to landing aircraft Wheat corn soybeans and tobacco are the most sensitive crops to hail damage 63 Hail is one of Canada s most costly hazards 69 Hailstorms have been the cause of costly and deadly events throughout history One of the earliest recorded incidents occurred around the 9th century in Roopkund Uttarakhand India 70 The largest hailstone in terms of maximum circumference and length ever recorded in the United States fell in 2003 in Aurora Nebraska United States 71 Tornadoes and waterspouts nbsp In June 2007 the town of Elie Manitoba was struck by an F5 tornado Main articles Tornado and Waterspout A tornado is a violent rotating column of air in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud otherwise known as a thundercloud or in rare cases the base of a cumulus cloud Tornadoes come in many sizes but are typically in the form of a visible condensation funnel whose narrow end touches the earth and is often encircled by a cloud of debris and dust 72 Most tornadoes have wind speeds between 40 and 110 mph 64 and 177 km h are approximately 75 metres 246 ft across and travel several kilometers a few miles before dissipating Some attain wind speeds of more than 300 mph 480 km h stretch more than 1 600 metres 1 mi across and stay on the ground for more than 100 kilometres dozens of miles 73 74 75 The Fujita scale and the Enhanced Fujita Scale rate tornadoes by damage caused An EF0 tornado the weakest category damages trees but does not cause significant damage to structures An EF5 tornado the strongest category rips buildings off their foundations and can deform large skyscrapers The similar TORRO scale ranges from a T0 for extremely weak tornadoes to T11 for the most powerful known tornadoes 76 Doppler radar data photogrammetry and ground swirl patterns cycloidal marks may also be analyzed to determine intensity and award a rating 77 nbsp Formation of numerous waterspouts in the Great Lakes region North America Waterspouts have similar characteristics as tornadoes characterized by a spiraling funnel shaped wind current that form over bodies of water connecting to large cumulonimbus clouds Waterspouts are generally classified as forms of tornadoes or more specifically non supercelled tornadoes that develop over large bodies of water 78 These spiralling columns of air frequently develop within tropical areas close to the equator but are less common within areas of high latitude 79 Flash flood Main article Flash flood nbsp A flash flood caused by a severe thunderstormFlash flooding is the process where a landscape most notably an urban environment is subjected to rapid floods 80 These rapid floods occur more quickly and are more localized than seasonal river flooding or areal flooding 81 and are frequently though not always associated with intense rainfall 82 Flash flooding can frequently occur in slow moving thunderstorms and is usually caused by the heavy liquid precipitation that accompanies it Flash floods are most common in arid regions as well as densely populated urban environments where few plants and bodies of water are present to absorb and contain the extra water Flash flooding can be hazardous to small infrastructure such as bridges and weakly constructed buildings Plants and crops in agricultural areas can be destroyed and devastated by the force of raging water Automobiles parked within affected areas can also be displaced Soil erosion can occur as well exposing risks of landslide phenomena Downburst Main article Downburst nbsp Trees uprooted or displaced by the force of a downburst wind in northwest Monroe County WisconsinDownburst winds can produce numerous hazards to landscapes experiencing thunderstorms Downburst winds are generally very powerful and are often mistaken for wind speeds produced by tornadoes 83 due to the concentrated amount of force exerted by their straight horizontal characteristic Downburst winds can be hazardous to unstable incomplete or weakly constructed infrastructures and buildings Agricultural crops and other plants in nearby environments can be uprooted and damaged Aircraft engaged in takeoff or landing can crash 14 83 Automobiles can be displaced by the force exerted by downburst winds Downburst winds are usually formed in areas when high pressure air systems of downdrafts begin to sink and displace the air masses below it due to their higher density When these downdrafts reach the surface they spread out and turn into the destructive straight horizontal winds 14 Thunderstorm asthma Main article Thunderstorm asthma Thunderstorm asthma is the triggering of an asthma attack by environmental conditions directly caused by a local thunderstorm During a thunderstorm pollen grains can absorb moisture and then burst into much smaller fragments with these fragments being easily dispersed by wind While larger pollen grains are usually filtered by hairs in the nose the smaller pollen fragments are able to pass through and enter the lungs triggering the asthma attack 84 85 86 87 Safety precautionsSee also Emergency management and Tornado preparedness Most thunderstorms come and go fairly uneventfully however any thunderstorm can become severe and all thunderstorms by definition present the danger of lightning 88 Thunderstorm preparedness and safety refers to taking steps before during and after a thunderstorm to minimize injury and damage Preparedness Preparedness refers to precautions that should be taken before a thunderstorm Some preparedness takes the form of general readiness as a thunderstorm can occur at any time of the day or year 89 Preparing a family emergency plan for example can save valuable time if a storm arises quickly and unexpectedly 90 Preparing the home by removing dead or rotting limbs and trees which can be blown over in high winds can also significantly reduce the risk of property damage and personal injury 91 The National Weather Service NWS in the United States recommends several precautions that people should take if thunderstorms are likely to occur 89 Know the names of local counties cities and towns as these are how warnings are described 89 Monitor forecasts and weather conditions and know whether thunderstorms are likely in the area 92 Be alert for natural signs of an approaching storm Cancel or reschedule outdoor events to avoid being caught outdoors when a storm hits 92 Take action early so you have time to get to a safe place 92 Get inside a substantial building or hard topped metal vehicle before threatening weather arrives 92 If you hear thunder get to the safe place immediately 92 Avoid open areas like hilltops fields and beaches and do not be or be near the tallest objects in an area when thunderstorms are occurring 89 92 Do not shelter under tall or isolated trees during thunderstorms 92 If in the woods put as much distance as possible between you and any trees during thunderstorms 92 If in a group spread out to increase the chances of survivors who could come to the aid of any victims from a lightning strike 92 Safety While safety and preparedness often overlap thunderstorm safety generally refers to what people should do during and after a storm The American Red Cross recommends that people follow these precautions if a storm is imminent or in progress 88 Take action immediately upon hearing thunder Anyone close enough to the storm to hear thunder can be struck by lightning 91 Avoid electrical appliances including corded telephones 88 Cordless and wireless telephones are safe to use during a thunderstorm 91 Close and stay away from windows and doors as glass can become a serious hazard in high wind 88 Do not bathe or shower as plumbing conducts electricity If driving safely exit the roadway turn on hazard lights and park Remain in the vehicle and avoid touching metal 88 The NWS stopped recommending the lightning crouch in 2008 as it does not provide a significant level of protection and will not significantly lower the risk of being killed or injured from a nearby lightning strike 92 93 94 nbsp Thunderstorm near Cuero TexasFrequent occurrencesSee also United States rainfall climatology nbsp Rotating wall cloud in OklahomaThunderstorms occur throughout the world even in the polar regions with the greatest frequency in tropical rainforest areas where they may occur nearly daily At any given time approximately 2 000 thunderstorms are occurring on Earth 95 Kampala and Tororo in Uganda have each been mentioned as the most thunderous places on Earth 96 a claim also made for Singapore and Bogor on the Indonesian island of Java Other cities known for frequent storm activity include Darwin Caracas Manila and Mumbai Thunderstorms are associated with the various monsoon seasons around the globe and they populate the rainbands of tropical cyclones 97 In temperate regions they are most frequent in spring and summer although they can occur along or ahead of cold fronts at any time of year 98 They may also occur within a cooler air mass following the passage of a cold front over a relatively warmer body of water Thunderstorms are rare in polar regions because of cold surface temperatures Some of the most powerful thunderstorms over the United States occur in the Midwest and the Southern states These storms can produce large hail and powerful tornadoes Thunderstorms are relatively uncommon along much of the West Coast of the United States 99 but they occur with greater frequency in the inland areas particularly the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys of California In spring and summer they occur nearly daily in certain areas of the Rocky Mountains as part of the North American Monsoon regime In the Northeast storms take on similar characteristics and patterns as the Midwest but with less frequency and severity During the summer air mass thunderstorms are an almost daily occurrence over central and southern parts of Florida Energy nbsp How thunderstorms launch particle beams into spaceSee also Sprite lightning Upper atmospheric lightning and St Elmo s fire If the quantity of water that is condensed in and subsequently precipitated from a cloud is known then the total energy of a thunderstorm can be calculated In a typical thunderstorm approximately 5 108 kg of water vapor are lifted and the amount of energy released when this condenses is 1015 joules This is on the same order of magnitude of energy released within a tropical cyclone and more energy than that released during the atomic bomb blast at Hiroshima Japan in 1945 16 The Fermi Gamma ray Burst Monitor results show that gamma rays and antimatter particles positrons can be generated in powerful thunderstorms 100 It is suggested that the antimatter positrons are formed in terrestrial gamma ray flashes TGF TGFs are brief bursts occurring inside thunderstorms and associated with lightning The streams of positrons and electrons collide higher in the atmosphere to generate more gamma rays 101 About 500 TGFs may occur every day worldwide but mostly go undetected StudiesIn more contemporary times thunderstorms have taken on the role of a scientific curiosity Every spring storm chasers head to the Great Plains of the United States and the Canadian Prairies to explore the scientific aspects of storms and tornadoes through use of videotaping 102 Radio pulses produced by cosmic rays are being used to study how electric charges develop within thunderstorms 103 More organized meteorological projects such as VORTEX2 use an array of sensors such as the Doppler on Wheels vehicles with mounted automated weather stations weather balloons and unmanned aircraft to investigate thunderstorms expected to produce severe weather 104 Lightning is detected remotely using sensors that detect cloud to ground lightning strokes with 95 percent accuracy in detection and within 250 metres 820 ft of their point of origin 105 nbsp Summer storm in 19th century Polish countryside picture by Jozef Chelmonski 1896 107 cm 42 1 in x163 cm 64 1 in National Museum in CracowMythology and religionThunderstorms strongly influenced many early civilizations Greeks believed that they were battles waged by Zeus who hurled lightning bolts forged by Hephaestus Some American Indian tribes associated thunderstorms with the Thunderbird who they believed was a servant of the Great Spirit The Norse considered thunderstorms to occur when Thor went to fight Jotnar with the thunder and lightning being the effect of his strikes with the hammer Mjolnir Hinduism recognizes Indra as the god of rain and thunderstorms Christian doctrine accepts that fierce storms are the work of God These ideas were still within the mainstream as late as the 18th century 106 Martin Luther was out walking when a thunderstorm began causing him to pray to God for being saved and promising to become a monk 107 Outside of EarthThunderstorms evidenced by flashes of lightning on Jupiter have been detected and are associated with clouds where water may exist as both a liquid and ice suggesting a mechanism similar to that on Earth Water is a polar molecule that can carry a charge 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Richard A 2000 Deep Moist Heat Drives Jovian Weather Science 287 5455 946 947 doi 10 1126 science 287 5455 946b S2CID 129284864 Russell S T Zhang T L Delva M et al 2007 Lightning on Venus inferred from whistler mode waves in the ionosphere Nature 450 7170 661 662 Bibcode 2007Natur 450 661R doi 10 1038 nature05930 PMID 18046401 S2CID 4418778 Further readingBurgess D W R J Donaldson Jr and P R Desrochers 1993 Tornado detection and warning by radar The Tornado Its Structure Dynamics Prediction and Hazards Geophys Monogr No 79 American Geophysical Union 203 221 Corfidi S F 1998 Forecasting MCS mode and motion Preprints 19th Conf on Severe Local Storms American Meteorological Society Minneapolis Minnesota pp 626 629 Davies J M 2004 Estimations of CIN and LFC associated with tornadic and nontornadic supercells Weather Forecast 19 4 714 726 Bibcode 2004WtFor 19 714D doi 10 1175 1520 0434 2004 019 lt 0714 eocala gt 2 0 co 2 Davies J M and R H Johns 1993 Some wind and instability parameters associated with strong and violent tornadoes Part I Helicity and mean shear magnitudes The Tornado Its Structure Dynamics Prediction and Hazards C Church et al Eds Geophysical Monograph 79 American Geophysical Union 573 582 David C L 1973 An objective of estimating the probability of severe thunderstorms Preprint Eight conference of Severe Local Storms Denver Colorado American Meteorological Society 223 225 Doswell C A III Baker D V Liles C A 2002 Recognition of negative factors for severe weather potential A case study Weather Forecast 17 937 954 doi 10 1175 1520 0434 2002 017 lt 0937 ronmff gt 2 0 co 2 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Doswell C A III S J Weiss and R H Johns 1993 Tornado forecasting A review The Tornado Its Structure Dynamics Prediction and Hazards C Church et al Eds Geophys Monogr No 79 American Geophysical Union 557 571 Johns R H J M Davies and P W Leftwich 1993 Some wind and instability parameters associated with strong and violent tornadoes Part II Variations in the combinations of wind and instability parameters The Tornado Its Structure Dynamics Prediction and Hazards Geophys Mongr No 79 American Geophysical Union 583 590 Evans Jeffry S Examination of Derecho Environments Using Proximity Soundings NOAA gov J V Iribarne and W L Godson Atmospheric Thermodynamics published by D Reidel Publishing Company Dordrecht the Netherlands 1973 M K Yau and R R Rogers Short Course in Cloud Physics Third Edition published by Butterworth Heinemann 1 January 1989 ISBN 9780750632157 ISBN 0 7506 3215 1External links nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Thunderstorms nbsp Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Thunderstorms Anatomy of a thunderstorm Archived 18 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine Electronic Journal of Severe Storms Meteorology Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Thunderstorm amp oldid 1187243787, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, 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