Types of Thunderstorms

Click on image for full size version (176K GIF) Photograph provided courtesy of Steve Albers

There are two main types of thunderstorms: ordinary and severe. Ordinary thunderstorms are the common summer storm.

Ordinary thunderstorms last about one hour. Rain and small hail occur.

Severe thunderstorms are really dangerous. They can produce large hail, strong winds, intense rain, flash floods, and tornadoes. Severe thunderstorms can last several hours.

Click on image for full size version (176K GIF) Photograph provided courtesy of Steve Albers

There are two main types of thunderstorms: ordinary and severe. Ordinary thunderstorms are the common summer storm.

Ordinary thunderstorms last about one hour. The precipitation associated with them is rain and occasionally small hail. An ordinary thunderstorm cloud can grow up to 12 kilometers high.

Severe thunderstorms are really dangerous. They are capable of producing baseball-sized hail, strong winds, intense rain, flash floods, and tornadoes. Severe thunderstorms can last several hours and can grow 18 kilometers high. Several phenomena are associated with severe thunderstorms. These include the gust front, microburst, supercell thunderstorm, and the squall line.

Click on image for full size version (176K GIF) Photograph provided courtesy of Steve Albers

There are two main types of thunderstorms: ordinary and severe. Ordinary thunderstorms are the common summer storm. They are usually multicell. Multicell storms consist of a line of thunderstorms in different stages of development.

Ordinary thunderstorms last about one hour. The precipitation associated with them is rain and occasionally small hail. An ordinary thunderstorm cloud can have a vertical extent up to 12 kilometers.

Severe thunderstorms are the most dangerous weather phenomenon in the United States. They are capable of producing baseball-sized hail, strong winds, intense rain, flash floods, and tornadoes. Severe thunderstorms can last several hours and can reach a vertical extent of 18 kilometers. Several phenomena are associated with severe thunderstorms. These include the gust front, microburst, supercell thunderstorm, and the squall line.