21 Thunderstorm Facts For Kids

1. A thunderstorm is a storm that produces rain, lightning, and thunder.
2. Thunderstorms are also called lighting storms or electrical storms.
3. A thunderstorm that is mature has the shape and appearance of an anvil or cauliflower head
4. Thunderstorms form within cumulonimbus clouds.
5. There are an estimated 2,000 thunderstorms active at any given moment and around 16 million thunderstorms annually.
6. The average diameter of a thunderstorm is 15 miles.
7. The average life span of a thunderstorm is 30 minutes.
8. The average water volume of a thunderstorm is around 275 million gallons.
9. The average energy output of a thunderstorm is 10 ¹⁵, more than the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan.
10. Thunderstorm clouds (thunderclouds) can reach up to 66,000 feet in the atmosphere from sea level.
11. Thunderstorms can occur anytime throughout the year, however they’re more common during the spring and summer months. In the winter, a snowstorm that causes thunder and lightning is called a thundersnow storm or winter thunderstorm.
12. A thunderstorm can be classified as one of four types: a single-cell thunderstorm, a multi-cell thunderstorm, a multi-cell line thunderstorm and a supercell thunderstorm.
13. A single-cell thunderstorm, also known as an air-mass-thunderstorm, is a single storm that has one main updraft.
14. A multi-cell thunderstorm, also known as multicellular thunderstorm, is a group of thunderstorms that form and dissipate in a large cluster.
15. A multi-cell line thunderstorm, also known as a squall line, is a group of thunderstorms moving in a line.
16. A supercell thunderstorm, also known as a rotating thunderstorm, is a severe thunderstorm with a rotating updraft.
17. A strong or severe thunderstorm can produce extreme weather events.
18. Some of the extreme weather produced by strong and severe thunderstorms are heavy rain, flooding, cloud-to-ground lightning, hail, downburst, and tornadoes.
19. The U.S. National Weather Service (NWS) tracks, monitors, and issues alerts for thunderstorm. The NWS does this using various types of technically, such as weather stations, weather satellites, pulse-Doppler radar and on the ground storm spotters.
20. The NWS issues a severe thunderstorm watch when the conditions are right to produce severe thunderstorms near a specific area.

Thunderstorms Pictures

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the below images will be helpful for your research on thunderstorms. Below are six pictures of different thunderstorms. These pictures should help you better understand how this severe weather event can appear.

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