Hail aloft is often very important in creating the static which results in lightning. Most thunderstorms within Tropical Cyclones do not produce copious hail, however. In fact, most thunderstorms within classic TCs are rather low-topped, that is to say, they do not reach way up into the upper troposphere as do severe thunderstorms which form over land. This is in no small part due to the temperature profile both in the vertical as well as horizontal of TCs. Rapidly strengthening and/or very strong TCs occasionally do produce tremendous amounts of lightning, and even hail, as their thunderstorms can respond to this intensity in such a way that they are essentially strong to severe cells within the larger cyclone.
(This is all a bit of a quick and dirty description).
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Re: Day 1. Tropical Storm Barry Forms in Gulf of Mexico
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