[color=red]YOUR GUIDE TO WHAT'S CAUSING THE WILD WEATHER[/co

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

What is high pressure?

The weight of the air in the atmosphere pushing down on Earth is called air pressure. When the air above us is cold, it sinks and compresses the air underneath causing higher pressure. Because the sinking air prevents cloud formation, high pressure brings fine weather even though the air causing it is cold.

What is low pressure?

This is warm air rising from the ground which creates low pressure below it. As the warm air rises, it cools and its water vapour turns into clouds which can lead to rain and storms.

What causes the wind to blow?

Air moves constantly and this movement causes the wind. When it blows fast enough, this leads to gales.

What causes storm clouds?

Clouds are visible collections of tiny water droplets and/or ice crystals (frozen water). From clouds, rain and snow falls. Storm clouds are caused when warm, moist air rises and cools. The water vapour condenses into droplets but the condensation process releases heat which keeps the air rising. The clouds grow bigger until they can rise no more and release their contents. The mixing of air, water vapour and droplets and ice inside cumulonimbus clouds, the biggest on Earth, causes storms. Large cumulonimbus clouds may extend to 60,000 feet or higher and a single one of these clouds can release as much energy as a nuclear bomb explosion.

What is lightning?

Violent air currents cause the ice crystals in a cumulonimbus cloud to crash into each other generating static electricity. The bottom of the cloud is negatively charged; the top, and the ground underneath, positively charged. These charges build up until electricity starts leaping between them. Lightning can heat the air up to about five times hotter than the surface of the sun.

What causes thunder?

The sound of thunder occurs when air becomes so hot it explodes.

[Michael]

What is that round yellow ball in the sky ?

What is that unusual colour when theres no clouds in the sky?

[NZstorm]

And I thought lightning was caused by two clouds crashing into each other.

Michael, you will have plenty of opportunity to study that unusual phenomena in the coming week.

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

And I thought lightning was caused by two clouds crashing into each other.

NO that's thunder, lightning is really caused by God getting angry and when he blows his fuse, he releases all that static energy.

Michael, you will have plenty of opportunity to study that unusual phenomena in the coming week.

Yes, 'regrettably'

JohnGaul
NZTS

[NZ Thunderstorm Soc]

This is not my doing, I got this from the Auckland Herald

JohnGaul
NZTS