What is the difference between isolated thunderstorms and scattered showers?
Ever check your daily forecast and see storms only to end up with a dry day? It's possible your area is experiencing isolated thunderstorms.
Intuitive in its phrasing the weather phenomenon refers to a storm that doesn't cover a large stretch of land, instead dumping rain on a concentrated area. So thunder claps nearby don't always mean lightning for you.
To better understand the rainy day event, here's what you should know about scattered versus isolated thunderstorms and which is more likely to result in extreme weather.
What does isolated thunderstorms mean?
Isolated thunderstorms have less coverage, blanketing a smaller patch of land and affecting fewer people than other types of storms.
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Are isolated thunderstorms dangerous?
They tend not to last very long and more rarely cause extreme weather on the ground, though there is still a possibility. Isolated thunderstorms most commonly occur where there are light winds and high moisture at low and middle levels close to the ground.
What is the difference between isolated thunderstorms and scattered showers?
Scattered showers cover more land, meaning more people will face a rain-soaked day while isolated thunderstorms affect much smaller patches of land.
Weather Channel meteorologist Ari Salsalari reports that an isolated thunderstorm has a coverage of between 10 and 20% while a scattered storm covers 30 to 50%.
William Churchill, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center adds that the percentage number you see on a forecast does not always correspond to coverage. Further out, it may refer to the likelihood of any precipitation, but as you get closer to a day-of forecast the number will likely refer to coverage and therefore indicate whether to expect scattered versus isolated storms.
Do isolated thunderstorms cause tornadoes?
They can, although they are less likely than higher coverage storms to result in extreme weather.
Whether a storm will result in extreme weather is partially dependent on the environment, Churchill says. In the plains, for example, it is not uncommon for an isolated storm to result in heavy hail, he explains.
The most prudent thing to do, Churchill says, is to check in with local media outlets of the Storm Predictions Center, which will indicate not only the type of storms to expect the probability of specific extreme weather hazards in your area.
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