Normally I would have always thought daytime thunderstorms would be more severe, but I actually think maybe the opposite is true now. We actually get more thunderstorms during the night where I live, and those tend to produce the most tornado and severe storm warnings.
Chosen Answer:
Depends on how ‘intense’ is defined.
More likely to produce hail? tornadoes? damaging wind? flash-flooding?
Thunderstorms are equally intense whether day or night.
Strong thermo-dynamics (day-time heating) combined with weak dynamics aloft can produce an intense storm on par with one with weak thermo-dynamics combined with strong dynamics (jet streaks, divergence).
Day-time thunderstorms may cause more damage b/c there are more of them but that doesn’t mean they are more intense.
by: TQ
on: 13th August 12