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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]
The upward motions within the storm and winds at higher levels in the atmosphere tend to cause the small ice crystals (and positive charge) in the upper part of the thunderstorm cloud to spread out horizontally some distance from the thunderstorm cloud base. This part of the thunderstorm cloud is called the anvil.
Lightning detectors and weather radar work together to detect storms. Lightning detectors indicate electrical activity, while weather radar indicates precipitation. Both phenomena are associated with thunderstorms and can help indicate storm strength. Air is moving upward due to instability.
A thunderstorm does not have to be completely dry to be considered dry; in many areas 0.1 inches (2.5 mm) is the threshold between a "wet" and "dry" thunderstorm. [1]
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 an average thunderstorm, the energy released amounts to about 10,000,000 kilowatt-hours (3.6 × 10 13 joule), which is equivalent to a 20-kiloton nuclear warhead. A large, severe ...
The first storm to be identified as the supercell type was the Wokingham storm over England, which was studied by Keith Browning and Frank Ludlam in 1962. [4] Browning did the initial work that was followed up by Lemon and Doswell to develop the modern conceptual model of the supercell. [5]
Thunder is the sound caused by and after lightning. [1] [2] [3] Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack.
The formation of multicellular thunderstorms imply that the updraft in the mother thunderstorm is offset from its downdraft. New cells usually form in the upwind (usually western or southwestern) part of the storm where the downdrafts of the mature cells meet the environmental wind, lifting air parcels and triggering new convection.