The Science Behind Severe T-Storms

The Spring season is the time of the year when the United States experiences the most severe weather. Severe storms can impact virtually any area of the US, but it is the most common in the Central Plains as well as in the South.

To create a severe thunderstorm, you need the right ingredients. In most scenarios, it is required that there is an ample amount of wind shear, lift, instability, and mositure. Wind shear is when there is a turning of the wind or an increase of wind speed in height. Lift allows thunderstorms to form and grow because of the rising air. Fronts and centers of low pressure are a couple of the best areas where the most lift is found. Next, you need instability, which has to do with the environmental lapse rate. When there is a higher or steeper lapse rate, the air temperature decreases more rapidly as altitude increases, so that allows parcels of air to rise further, helping thunderstorms to build more. Lastly, you need mositure. This is the fuel of thunderstorms and the moisture also helps to form and grow the storms.

When the setup is right and you have the right ingredients, then there's a pretty good chance that severe weather will occur. There is a certain criteria that identifies a storm as severe. You need either winds in excess of 58 mph or hail of at least one inch in diameter. Now you know the science behind severe thunderstorms.

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