Thunderstorm is a natural phenomenon in which electrical discharges are formed inside the clouds or between the cloud and the earth's surface. In this weather, dark thunderclouds occur. Typically, this event is accompanied by thunder, rain, hail and strong winds.
Education
In order for a thundercloud to arise, several factors are necessary for the development of such a concept as convection. These structures are a sufficient amount of moisture for precipitation and elements of cloud particles in a liquid and ice state.
Convection contributes to the development of a thunderstorm in such cases:
• uneven heating of air near the surface of the earth and in its upper layers. An example is the different temperatures of land and water;
• during the displacement of warm air by cold in the atmospheric layers;
• A thundercloud appears in the mountains as air rises.
Each such cloud passes through a cumulus, mature thunderstorm and decay stage.
Structure
The movement and distribution of electric charges around and inside a thundercloud is a continuous and constantly changing process. The dipole structure is dominant. Its meaning is that a negative charge is located at the bottom of the cloud, and a positive charge is at the top. Atmospheric ions moving under the influence of an electric field create so-called shielding layers at the cloud’s borders, covering them with an electric structure.
Depending on the geographical location, the main negative charge is where the air temperature is from −5 to −17 ° C. The density of the space charge is 1-10 C / km³.
Moving thunderclouds
The speed of any clouds, including thunderstorms, directly depends on the movement of the earth. The pace of movement of an isolated thunderstorm most often reaches 20 km / h, and sometimes all 65-80 km / h. The latter phenomenon occurs during the movement of active cold fronts. In most cases, during the collapse of the old thunderstorm cells, new ones form.
The storm is triggered by energy. It is enclosed in latent heat, which is released by condensation of water vapor, forming a cloudy drop. Thunderstorm energy as a whole can be estimated based on rainfall.
Distribution
At the same time, there are thousands of thunderclouds on our planet in which the average amount of lightning reaches one hundred per second. They are distributed unevenly over the surface of the Earth. Over the oceans such weather is observed ten times less than over the continents. Thunderclouds are most often found in tropical and subtropical climates. Maximum lightning discharges are concentrated in Central Africa.
In areas such as Antarctica and the Arctic, thunderstorm activity generally does not occur. Conversely, mountainous areas such as the Cordillera and the Himalayas are familiar places for lightning events such as a thundercloud. During the seasons, this weather occurs in most cases in the summer during the daytime and rarely in the evening and in the morning.
Thunderstorms in other natural phenomena
A thundercloud is usually accompanied by heavy rain showers. On average, in such weather, 2 thousand cubic meters of precipitation falls. With larger thunderstorms - ten times more.
A tornado (as well as a tornado) is a whirlwind that a thundercloud creates. It goes down, often to the very ground level. It has the appearance of a trunk formed from a cloud the size of hundreds of meters. The diameter of the funnel is usually about four hundred meters.
In addition to these natural phenomena, a thundercloud contributes to the appearance of squalls and a downward flow. The latter occurs at an altitude where the air temperature is lower than in the environment. The stream becomes even colder when particles of ice precipitate in it, which evaporate into cloudy drops.
A propagating downward flow forms a clear color difference between warm, humid and cold air. The movement of the squall front can be easily recognized by a sharp drop in temperature - five degrees Celsius or more - and by a strong wind (it can reach and exceed 50 m / s).
The destruction of the tornado has a circular shape, and a downward flow - a straight line. Both phenomena in the end result in rain. In rare cases, precipitation evaporates during a fall. This phenomenon is called "dry thunderstorm." In other cases, rain, hail, and then floods occur.
Safety precautions
There are a number of rules of conduct during the weather, which are accompanied by thunder and lightning. Thunderclouds are extremely dangerous for the life of all creatures, not only on the street (although this is the greatest risk), but also near indoor windows. It is important to know that lightning strikes most often strike high objects. This is due to the fact that electrical particles follow the path of least resistance.
During a thunderstorm, try not to be near power plants and power lines, under tall, lonely-standing trees, in open areas (such as a field, valley, or meadow). Swimming in a river, lake, and other water bodies is dangerous because the water has good electrical conductivity.
A plane that flies through a cumulonimbus cloud falls into the turbulence zone. At such moments, transport throws in all directions under the influence of cloud flows. Passengers feel strong shaking, and the plane - a load that is extremely undesirable for him.
There is a high risk of using a motorcycle, bicycle or other objects that are made of metal. It is also life-threatening to be on any hill, such as the roofs of houses, to which thunderclouds are closest. Photos of such natural phenomena give the impression of beauty and spectacularity, but the risk of observing such weather from the street can cost a person his life.