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Pyrocumulonimbus are cumuliform clouds that can form over a large fire and that are particularly dry. [10] When the higher levels of the atmosphere are cooler, and the surface is thus warmed to extreme temperatures due to a wildfire, volcano, or other event, convection will occur, and produce clouds and lightning.
Under optimum conditions, the most intense thunderstorms can be seen at up to 100 miles (160 km) over flat terrain or water when the clouds are illuminated by large lightning discharges. However, an upper limit of 30–50 miles (48–80 km) is more common due to topography, trees on the horizon, low to mid-level clouds, and the fact that local ...
Lightning is a natural phenomenon, more specifically an atmospheric electrical phenomenon. It consists of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions, either both existing within the atmosphere or one within the atmosphere and one on the ground, with these regions then becoming partially or wholly electrically neutralized.
(Water is a polar molecule that can carry a charge, so it is capable of creating the charge separation needed to produce lightning). [108] These electrical discharges can be up to a thousand times more powerful than lightning on the Earth. [109] The water clouds can form thunderstorms driven by the heat rising from the interior. [110]
Water vapor can also be indirect evidence supporting the presence of extraterrestrial liquid water in the case of some planetary mass objects. Water vapor, which reacts to temperature changes, is referred to as a 'feedback', because it amplifies the effect of forces that initially cause the warming. Therefore, it is a greenhouse gas. [2]
Atmospheric pressure decreases with altitude, so the rising air expands in a process that expends energy and causes the air to cool, which makes water vapor condense into cloud. [8] Water vapor in saturated air is normally attracted to condensation nuclei such as dust and salt particles that are small enough to be held aloft by normal ...
Above the lower portions of the cumulonimbus the water vapor becomes ice crystals, such as snow and graupel, the interaction of which can lead to hail and to lightning formation, respectively. When causing thunderstorms, these clouds may be called thunderheads. Cumulonimbus can form alone, in clusters, or along squall lines.
Volcanic plumes can also carry abundant water. [24] This water is sourced from the magma, [25] vaporized from surrounding sources such as lakes and glaciers, [26] and entrained from ambient air as the plume rises through the atmosphere. [6] One study suggested that the water content of volcanic plumes can be greater than that of thunderstorms. [27]