Home / Editor's Pick /

Weather explainer: How do thunderstorms develop?

10:35 AM
May 12, 2023

Weather explainer
How do thunderstorms develop?

storm

Storms affect some parts of the United States daily. But how do they actually develop?

They begin to form when warm air lies under colder air in an unstable atmosphere. The warm air will then rise quickly and condense into water droplets to form a cumulonimbus cloud.

Within the cloud, the warm air and water droplets continue to rise and will eventually freeze into positively charged ice crystals. When the ice crystals are heavy enough, they begin to fall as hail.

As the hail falls, it becomes negatively charged. The negatively charged pieces of hail at the base of the cloud then become attracted to the positively charged Earth's surface.

When the attraction is strong enough, the charges come together creating a flash of lightning. It is the rapid expansion and heating of the air which causes the claps of thunder.

Watch our weather-explained video below to find out more about how thunderstorms develop:

Weather & Radar USA editorial team
More on the topic
Happy Earth Day
Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Employ renewable energy

Earth Day 2025 - Our Power, Our Planet
Sunday, June 22, 2025

Why & how does it work?

High pressure & extreme heat
Sleeping cat
Sunday, April 20, 2025

Seasonal tiredness

What causes spring fatigue?
All weather news
This might also interest you
Daily briefing
Thursday, June 26, 2025

Daily briefing

Summer storm chances increase
Today's daily brief
Friday, June 27, 2025

Daily briefing

More summer storm trouble
Wednesday, June 25, 2025

Lightning safety

Group of 20 hit by lightning in S.C.
All articles
Weather & Radar

www.weatherandradar.com

instagramfacebookthreadsContact uslinkList
Privacy policy | Legal info | Accessibility statement