Weather Change in India: Due to extreme heat in the plains, when the temperature of sand and roads reaches 60 to 70 degrees Celsius, the air there becomes light and rises rapidly, and disturbs the balance of the atmosphere.

Weather Change: Why do storms occur in summer?

During the scorching heat and hot afternoons, the weather often becomes terrifying and surprising. When the sun's heat reaches its peak, the wind dies down completely, and the ground seems to be on fire, suddenly a massive cloud of dust rises into the sky. In an instant, dark clouds gather, and heavy rain begins, accompanied by a powerful storm. Behind this cyclonic change, immediately following the intense heat, lies a very interesting and precise mathematical mechanism of nature and meteorology.

heating of the earth and rising of the air

The formation of storms and hurricanes begins with the sun's intense rays scorching the Earth. In the scorching heat of summer, when the sun shines directly on the plains, roads made of sand, stone, and asphalt become intensely heated, reaching temperatures of 60 to 70 degrees Celsius. Contact with this extremely hot surface heats the air directly above it to 40 to 44 degrees Celsius. Scientifically, when heated, air becomes lighter, causing it to rise rapidly upward, creating significant instability in the atmosphere.

The low-pressure zone is the real engine of the storm.

When warm air in a particular area rises rapidly, a large vacuum is created near the ground. In meteorological terms, this is called a "low-pressure zone." It's a natural law that air always moves from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure, just as air rushes out of an inflated balloon when it opens. To fill this void, cold, heavy air from surrounding areas rushes toward the center at a very high speed.

Why do storms wreak havoc in the plains?

This process is most active during severe heat waves in the plains of North India, such as Rajasthan, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana. When a large low-pressure zone forms over these plains due to extreme heat, it draws in cooler air from surrounding areas. This competition to fill the vacuum is so intense that wind speeds can reach 50 to 80 kilometers per hour. These high-speed winds carry heavy dust across the plains, creating what we call a thunderstorm.

How are clouds formed in the sky?

When warm, moist air rises rapidly, it collides with the colder layers of the atmosphere. Upon contact with the cold air, this moisture condenses into tiny water droplets, forming dense clouds. These storm clouds, which form during summer, are extremely large, sometimes reaching heights of 10 to 15 kilometers. The atmosphere within these clouds is so turbulent that the internal winds swirl at cyclonic speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour.

How does lightning strike within the clouds?

The extreme cold in the upper reaches of these massive storm clouds causes water droplets to turn into tiny ice crystals and hailstones. When extremely high winds blow within the cloud, these ice crystals and water droplets collide and rub against each other with great force. TThis intense collision and friction create a massive static electric charge within the cloud.This charge is visible on Earth as lightning and flashes, sometimes accompanied by heavy hailstorms.