Home / Weather News /

Eye on the sky - A sky lover's guide to thunderstorms

17:00
19 May 2022

Eye on the sky
A sky lover’s guide to thunderstorms

WeatherRadar for Friday 20th MayWeatherRadar for Friday 20th May. Click to explore more!

With a threat of some thunderstorms in the forecast, particularly in Ireland, we thought we would take this opportunity to create a visual guide of what you might spot in the sky tomorrow.

Cumulonimbus

Cumulonimbus storm clouds erupt from smaller, fair-weather cumulus clouds, and even alone can produce some pretty spectacular structures.

Another type of cloud associated with thunderstorms, though more rare, are mammatus clouds. These are a child of cumulonimbus clouds and though seemingly ominous, could be indicative of both past or impending severe weather.

Keep your eyes peeled for an explainer piece on mammatus clouds tomorrow.

Lightning

Whilst you won’t want to be in close proximity to lightning, given their dangerous nature, watching the sky light up safely from afar is a treat not to be missed.

Lightning is naturally more visible at night, but storms that develop at night tend to become ‘elevated’, meaning they form higher up in the atmosphere, where it is warmer than at the surface.

These elevated storms tend to be more intense as they create stronger downdrafts further from the surface.

As consequence, these storms tend to produce a greater number of cloud to ground lightning strikes, though tomorrow’s look to be more of a daytime feature.

Rainbows

But it’s not just menacing features to keep an eye out for during a thunderstorm; with the harshness of nature also comes raw beauty.

Rainbows often follow a spell of sunshine and showers, and form when sunlight is scattered through water droplets.

This light is then reflected and refracted, creating a rainbow as the light exits the droplets.

It’s not just sunshine that needs to be present, plenty of other conditions need to align, including the angle of the sun in the sky, the position of the sun in relation to the viewer, and of course the presence of water droplets.

So, keep your eyes on the sky tomorrow, especially if you're in Ireland! And don't forget to share your shots with us here.

Weather & Radar editorial team
More on the topic
dennis oswald selfie supercell stormchaser
Wednesday 16 July 2025

Storm chaser's Blog

USA - Alone with the supercell
Wednesday 9 July 2025

30°C in London

Summer comeback in the UK
Side-by-side weather maps showing UK and Ireland conditions. Left image: radar showing widespread rain bands spiralling across England, Wales, and Ireland with heavier rain near Cardiff and Liverpool; temperatures range from 16°C in Glasgow to 20°C in London and Cork. Right image: wind gust forecast highlighting strongest winds over southwest England and southern Ireland, with gusts up to 45 mph near Plymouth and 40 mph in Cardiff, Dublin, and Birmingham.
Monday 14 July 2025

Lots of wind and rain

Low pressure reaches the UK and Ireland
All weather news
This might also interest you
Monday 7 July 2025

Breakfast brief

Broadly dry, cooler start to the week
Wednesday 9 July 2025

Breakfast brief

Overcast start, warmer afternoon
Two weather radars side-by-side, one showing sunny conditions over the UK and the other a temperature map showing widespread warmth.
Thursday 10 July 2025

Breakfast brief

Turning sunnier and warmer
All articles
Weather & Radar

www.weatherandradar.ie

facebooktwitteryouTubeContact uslinkList
Privacy Policy | Legal info | Accessibility statement