There are three main levels to a thunderstorm. These include the Cumulus; Mature; and Dissapation levels. The storm will reach its peak at the mature level, and then gradually start to die out at the dissipation stage.

Cumulus

There are two ways a storm can start:

Thermals are produced by solar insolation, heating up the ground, causing the clouds to rise high in the air.

If a rookie storm is an area where wind is blowing in a number of directions, forcing the air to rise, and the clouds with it.

A mature hurricane consists of bands of thunderstorms spiraling round a calm central area called the eye. An average hurricane can reach up to 970 km (600 miles) in diameter and contain hundreds of storms. They produce winds up to 250 km/h (150 mph), intense rain and ocean surges. They can last for weeks and travel thousands of miles.

Te country with most tornadoes in the world is the US with about 1200 every year. The only continent not to have tornadoes is Antarctica. Curiously enough other two countries with a very large number of tornadoes are the Netherlands and the UK (mainly England) but their tornadoes tend to be rather small affairs