Why do thunderstorms always happen when the weather gets hot and humid? First of all, thunderstorms do not always happen when it is hot and humid. Warm temperatures and high humidity are key ingredients to thunderstorm growth, but many factors can discourage storm development, even when it is hot and humid. It can be too warm aloft. This negates the buoyancy of warm and sticky air near the surface. If the warm, humid air doesn’t rise, it won’t cool and condense into clouds. Upper level winds can be too weak in which case showers may form, but the falling rain will snuff out the updrafts and keep storms from growing explosively. But if these inhibiting factors are not in place, there is no doubt that hot and sticky weather is likely to turn stormy at some point.
