Download Thunder storms and Lightning

THUNDER STORMS AND LIGHTNING
By: Kyle Clearly, Zach Weissinger, Nick Reimer
STORM FACTS
• Nearly 2000 thunderstorms are in progress
around the world.
• A typical thunder storm is 15 miles in diameter
and last an average of 30 minutes.
• There are 16 million thunder storms a year.
FACTS CONTINUED
• You can estimate how far away a storm is by
counting the seconds between flashes of
lightning and thunder claps.
• The strongest type of thunder storm is the super
cell.
LIGHTNING FACTS
• The odds of becoming a lightning victim in the
U.S. in any one year is 1 in 700,000.
• The odds of being struck in your lifetime are 1 in
3,000.
• Lightning is five times hotter than the surface of
the sun.
LIGHTNING FACTS CONTINUED
• A lightning flash is no more than one inch wide.
• A stroke of lightning moves 62,000 miles per
second, one third the speed of light.
• Power failures caused by lightning strikes cost
utility companies as much as $1 billion annually.
VOCAB
• Stepped Leader: The difference in positively and
negatively break down and a branch channel of
partially charged air is formed between the two charged
regions.
• Return Stroke: The stepped leader generally moves
from the center of the cloud toward the ground. When it
nears the ground a branch channel of positively
charged particles rushes upwards to meet it.
VOCAB CONTINUED
• Super cells: Severe thunderstorms can produce more
violent weather conditions that can develop into selfsustaining, extremely powerful storms.
• Downbursts: Strong winds exceeding speeds of 160
Km/h can cause violent downdrafts that are
concentrated in a local area.
HOW THUNDER STORMS ARE FORMED
• For a thunder storm to form it needs three conditions.
1. A source of moisture.
2. Lifting of the air mass.
3. And an unstable atmosphere.
• Convention can cause a cumulus to grow into a
cumulonimbus cloud. Cumulonimbus clouds conditions
are the same that produce thunderstorms.
TYPES OF THUNDERSTORMS
• Air-mass thunderstorms: When air rises because of
unequal heating of Earth’s surface within one air mass.
There are two kinds of Air-mass storms.
• Mountain thunderstorm: Air mass rises by orographic
lifting which involves air moving up the side of a
mountain.
• Sea-Breeze thunderstorm: Local air mass
thunderstorms that occur because land and water
stores release thermal energy differently. Occur along
coastal areas in the summer.
• Frontal Thunderstorm: Produced by advancing cold
fronts and more rarely warm fronts. In cold fronts cold
air pushes under warm air which is less dense, rapidly
lifting it up a steep cold front boundary which produces
a thin line of thunderstorms.
LIGHTNING
• Lightning is the transfer of electricity generated by rapid
rushes of air in cumulonimbus clouds.
• Sheet Lightning: is reflected by the clouds.
• Spider Lightning: Crawls across sky for up to 150 Km.
• Ball Lightning: A hovering ball about the size of a
pumpkin that fizzles or bangs.
THUNDER
• A lightning bolt heats the surrounding air to about
30,000 °C.
• The thunder you hear is the sound produced as
superheated air rapidly expands and contracts.
• Sound waves travel faster than light waves, so you
hear it before you see it.
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
• To avoid being stuck by lightning, squat low to the
ground on the balls of your feet.
• Duck your head and make yourself smallest target.
• Avoid hiding in Small sheds, isolated trees, and
convertible automobiles.
QUESTIONS
• What is the strongest type of thunder storm?
A. Super cell Storm.
B. Single cell Storm.
C. Multi cell Cluster Storm.
• How many times hotter is lightning than the sun?
A. 2x hotter.
B. The same heat.
C. 5x hotter.
• What causes thunder?
A. Lightning.
B. Rain.
C. Wind.
• How hot is lightning?
A. 30,000 °F
B. 54,000 °F
C. 75,000 °F
• What should you do if your caught outside in a
thunderstorm?
A. Stand in the middle of the field.
B. Seek out shelter.
C. Hide under a tree.
ANSWERS
1. A
2. C
3. A
4. B
5. B
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3QaAVpzedA