Severe T-Storm Warnings Galore, No Lightning?

UPDATE (1 PM): The SPC has issued a Moderate Risk, albeit small, for tomorrow. I want thunderstorm enthusiasts to understand that this will be the first time we have a shot at seeing legitimate thunderstorms (with large hail, high winds and possible tornadoes) that we have in a while, probably this year... 2009 has been unusually quiet so far.

Trees are down and power is out sporadically behind today's "storms", which have faded now, but not before causing these wind gusts over 65 mph:

Fort Worth, TX: 71 mph Emporia, KS: 70 mph Frionia, TX: 69 mph Yoakum County, TX: 69 mph Bushland, TX: 68 mph Lamb, TX: 68 mph

ORIGINAL POST: There were 25 Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in effect on our Missouri Advisories Map (PREMIUM | PRO) at 9 AM Central time today, but if you checked the Lightning Map, you saw nary a strike.

What was going on? Well, a little known secret is that the government's definition of "Severe Thunderstorm" doesn't include any lightning (even though NOAA's NWS defines a Severe Thunderstorm Warning as occurring because of a Thunderstorm, and a Thunderstorm as containing lightning). It's just an unspoken rule. The approaching weather system only has to meet forecast wind criteria of 58 mph or higher, which these storms are doing.

If you read the warnings closely, you'd see language like this: "THESE ARE DANGEROUS STORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS (BARRY COUNTY, MO)" but nothing about lightning (unless they were cutting and pasting from standard warning text). Here's a look at the severe (thunder)storms moving into the Warning Area.

The reason for this is that there just isn't enough warm air this time of year to generate clouds with high tops. Without high-topped clouds, you can't get the temperature differential for lightning to form (see my previous Lightning Seminar Notes - search for "Lightning Seminar" at right).

NOTE: Lightning maps on the Internet only include "cloud-to-ground" lightning strikes; it's possible that cloud-to-cloud lightning is happening but not reaching the ground, though internal data at AccuWeather did not indicate that either.

These storms will fade as they move into cooler air, but we will see legitimate thunderstorms by midweek; unfortunately they could be affecting the same areas that were devastated by the late January Ice Storm (Kentucky and surrounding area - 35,000 are still without power in Kentucky). The threat from these storms will not be lightning, but high winds which could fell additional trees and branches that were partially downed by the ice storm, causing additional power outages.