the type of cloud that is known for causing thunderstorms
Thunderstorm A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm, lightning storm, or thundershower, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder.[1] Thunderstorms occur in a type of cloud known as a cumulonimbus. They are usually accompanied by strong winds, heavy rain, and sometimes snow, sleet, hail, or, in contrast, no precipitation at all. Thunderstorms may line up in a series or become a rainband, known as a squall line. Strong or severe thunderstorms include some of the most dangerous weather phenomena, including large hail, strong winds, and tornadoes. Some of the most persistent severe thunderstorms, known as supercells, rotate as do cyclones. While most thunderstorms move with the mean wind flow through the layer of the troposphere that they occupy, vertical wind shear sometimes causes a deviation in their course at a right angle to the wind shear direction.
Distribution of lightning The map on the right shows that lightning is not distributed evenly around the planet.[5] About 70% of lightning occurs on land in the Tropics, where the majority of thunderstorms occur. The North and South Poles and the areas over the oceans have the fewest lightning strikes. The place where lightning occurs most often (according to the data from 2004 to 2005) [needs updating] is near the small village of Kifuka in the mountains of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo,[6] where the elevation is around 975 metres (3,200Â ft). This region received 158 lightning strikes per square kilometer (409 per sq mi) a year.[2]