If a cu has penetrated the freezing level, that's enough to scare me. We get
some dandies over the Cascades, Siskiyous, and Rockies.

Bob Gardner

"Icebound" wrote in message
...

"Matt Whiting" wrote in message
...
O. Sami Saydjari wrote:

Thunderstorm season is up us. I get a little concerned when I see
towering cumulus clouds forming in my flight path because I know that
towering cumulus clouds can turn into thunderstorms.

...snip...

2. Do most towering cumulus clouds not mature into thunderstorms?

Yes, very few make it to a full-blown thunderstorm. Part of it depends
on your definition of towering. To me a 6,000 foot tall clouds is
towering, but if you mean 50,000 feet, then few probably get that high
without becoming a thunderstorm.

.... "...if you mean 50,000 feet....", then probably ALL will be a
thunderstorm. Few clouds-of-vertical-development will exceed 30,000 feet
ASL without characteristics of a "thunderstorm".