Arseoels Family Odyssey: Thunder......Lightning.....and Storms so Frightening.

One of the most impressive aspects of the wet season in northern Australia is the incredible array of shapes and forms that clouds produce during storms. Steve learnt a great deal about meteorology during his flight training and what particular cloud formations will do to a helicopter without proper understanding. There is one cloud formation in particular which Steve refers to as 'death' because it has uprafts and downdrafts which can cause a small flying machine to hit the ground like a dart. In saying that, those updrafts and downdrafts make magnificent columns of cloud. As well as clouds, the accompanying thunder and lightning made for a super impressive show which had us on the edge of our seats sometimes. Especially at night where the lightning was more visible, it was a fantastic sight with constant flashes all around us. There was always the delay between thunder and lightning but then, on occasion, it cracked as soon as the flashes subsided which was deafening. Woohoo! Awesome. I love a good storm and my exposure to a proper wet season in northern Australia hasn't dampened my enthusiasm and excitement when I hear the distant rumble. There really isn't that much more I can say about the topic except to show you some of my favourite and most dramatic marvels of meteorology.