Class 10/03/2025

What are the 3 types of lighting?

• Cloud to Cloud

• Cloud to Ground

• Ground to Cloud

Lightening requires…

Charge Seperation

What is Charge Separation?

seperation of positive and negative charges into different region of cloud

Where do positive charges accumulate in a cloud?

the top of the cloud

Where do negative charges accumulate in a cloud?

the bottom of the cloud

Ice crystal in clouds influence _____. 

charge separation

The flash of lighening refers to what?

entire processes of electrons transferring

Describe Ball Lightening

less common than strokes and leaders, appears as round glowing mass of electrified air

Describe St. Elmo’s fire

occurs when ionization in the air causes tall objects to glow as they emit sparks

Describe Sprites

very large electrical bursts that rise from cloud tops as lighting occurs below

Describe Blue jets

upward-moving electrical ejections from the tops of the most active regions of thunderstorms

Describe stepped leader

rapid and staggered advance of a shaft of negatively charged air

What is the combination of strokes called?

lighting flash

Identify this

Flash

Identify this

Ball lightning

Identify this:

St. Elmo’s Fire

Identify this

Sprites

Identify this:

Blue Jets

What causes thunder?

air expanding explosively due to an increase in temperature during a lightning stroke

What causes lightning strike and thunder sound to travel slower than light?

A lag

What is heat lightning?

occurs without thunder

What causes thunder to sound rumbling?

Echoing of sound waves off of objects

How many people are killed by lightning in the U.S. every year

70

What should you do when lightning is present?

• Always take cover in a building

• do not stand under a tree/other tall object (lightning rod)

• Avoid standing on rooftops, hills, or high areas

• do not be in a pool, lake, or hot tub

Describe Tornadoes

• zones of extremely rapid, rotating, winds benath the base of cumulonimbus clouds

• wide variety of shapes and sizes

• only last few minutes, travel northeast 

• weakest: winds of 65 mph

• strongest: 280mph

Describe Tornado Formation

frontal boundarise, squall lines, MCCs, supercells, and tropical cyclones.

T/F: most destructive Tornadoes come from supercells

True

T/F: Tornadoes are stronger than hurricanes

True

When do most tornadoes occur?

springtime

Why do most tornadoes occur in the spring time?

The contrast between warm and cold air in the atmostsphere is the greatest

Most tornadoes rotate around a _____ core

single

Describe some of the most violent Tornados

they have several small zones of intense rotations - Suction vortices

Describe suction vortices

small zones of intense rotation

What measures Tornado magnitude of damage?

Fujita scale

What country has the most tornadoes?

U.S.

What is a Tornado outbreak?

an event in which a single weather system produces at least 6 tornadoes

Do tornadoes often have fatalities?

most tornadoes do not kil anyoneWh

Who is responsible for issuing severe storm and tornado watches for the U.S.?

Storm Prediction Center (SPC)

Describe watersprouts?

tornadoes that occur over warm-water bodies (not land)