when are thunderstorms most likely? Thunderstorms are most likely to happen in the spring and summer months and during the afternoon and evening hours but can occur year-round and at all hours. southeastern and western states, most thunderstorms occur during the afternoon.
Thunderstorms can happen anywhere and at anytime as long as the weather conditions are right. These storms most frequently form within areas located at mid-latitude where warm moist air front collides and border cool air fronts.
Thunderstorms occur more often in the afternoon and evening because in order for there to be high amounts of moisture in the air along with warm rising air, there must be instability in the atmosphere.
The Mature Cumulus Stage This is the most dangerous stage when tornadoes, large hail, damaging winds, and flash flooding may occur. An example of mature Cumulonimbus.
Southeast U.S.Thunderstorms are most frequent in the Southeast U.S., especially along the Gulf Coast from Louisiana to Florida. Thunderstorms are also fairly frequent in the rest of the Southeast U.S. into the Great Plains of the U.S. (more than 50 days per year, on average, with thunderstorms).
Worldwide, there are an estimated 16 million thunderstorms each year, and at any given moment, there are roughly 2,000 thunderstorms in progress. There are about 100,000 thunderstorms each year in the U.S. alone.
During the summer months, the sun heats air near the surface more rapidly and to higher temperatures throughout the day. The afternoon and evening hours are most conducive for thunderstorm development because this is the time at which radiational heating and instability are maximized.
Bluestein: In the plains of the U.S. during June and July, thunderstorms most often form during the night around midnight when most people are sleeping and it is much cooler than during the day.
In the summer, thunderstorms typically develop in the afternoon when the sun heats air near the ground. If the atmosphere is unstable, bubbles of warm air will rise and produce clouds, precipitation, and eventually lightning.
Thunderstorms form when warm, moist air rises into cold air. The warm air becomes cooler, which causes moisture, called water vapor, to form small water droplets - a process called condensation. The cooled air drops lower in the atmosphere, warms and rises again.
CumulusThe life of a typical non-severe thunderstorm goes through three stages: Cumulus, Mature, and Dissipating. In the first stage (cumulus), we see the cloud that will become the thunderstorm starting to form and grow due to the rising thermal (or updraft).
Thunderstorms occur most often in the tropical latitudes over land, where the air is most likely to heat quickly and form strong updrafts.