Is it possible to have lightnening during a snow storm?

Answer 1

There are usually three forms of thundersnow:

A normal thunderstorm on the leading edge of a cold front or warm front that either forms in a winter environment or one which runs into cool air and maintains the precipitation as snow.
A heavy synoptic snowstorm in the comma head of an extratropical cyclone that sustains strong vertical mixing which allows for favorable conditions for lightning and thunder to occur.
A lake effect or ocean effect thunderstorm which is produced by cold air passing over relatively warm water, this effect commonly produces snow squalls over the Great Lakes.

One unique aspect of thundersnow is that the snowfall acts as an acoustic suppressor of the thunder. The thunder from a typical thunderstorm can be heard many miles away, while the thunder from thundersnow can usually only be heard within a two to three kilometer radius from the lightning. In the United States, March is their peak month of formation, and on average, only three events are reported per year.

Thundersnow is a particularly rare meteorological phenomenon that includes the typical behavior of a thunderstorm, but with snow falling as the primary precipitation instead of rain. It commonly falls in regions of strong upward motion within the cold sector of extratropical cyclones between autumn and spring when surface temperatures are most likely to be near or below freezing.

Answer 2

Thunder and lightning can be associated with snowstorms but they are rare and occur more often near the coast.

The answer to the question of whether or not there can be thunder and lightning during a snowstorm is this. It is possible but it is quite rare. Here's why.

A thunderstorm depends on rapidly rising moist warm air to produce the effects we see. These effects are, large volumes of rain in a short period of time, strongly gusting winds, hail, and of course lightning. When conditions aren't right (surface air is too cool and dry) it is impossible for air at the surface to rise fast and high enough to create a thunderstorm cell. Basically in winter the air is not warm or moist enough to produce thunderstorm cells.

Answer 3

Of course. However, you must need all the instability to come together at once in a cloud top, including strong lift, steep lapse rates, good vertical motion, cold air aloft, moisture (aat least modest), and good forcing of the precip.

Answer 4

Of course it is possible. It's called Thunder Snow.

Answer 5

Yes. It only seems to happen when the snow is falling fast, hard, and heavy. It looks really eerie too, because it backlights all the snowflakes.

Answer 6

unquestionably, Its no longer very undemanding to work out lightning or hear thunder for the time of a snow hurricane yet whilst there is adequate convective interest, the possibility ought to exist for "thundersnow"

Answer 7

yes it is called thunder snow we get it here in wisconsin a couple times a year

Answer 8

yes, seen it a few times myself here in ohio

Answer 9

We had one in Illinois about a month ago.

Answer 10

yes it is.. lightning occurs when the negative charge clouds are in contact with positive charge clouds....