From Facebook: Melissa Ebbs I thought I'd post this here, since last year I…

Melissa Ebbs I thought I'd post this here, since last year I posted it to my Weather Nerds Group Palm Bay & S. Brevard County – Weather Nerds – but it's a cool factoid.

Most people in Florida don't even realize we have a giant ridge aka dropoff that runs right through the middle of the state. I learned this as I am fascinated by why weather is the way it is in the Sunshine State when I moved to the "Four Corners" region in 2013 from SE Michigan.

The ridge that runs through the middle of Florida is called the Central Florida Ridge, also known as the Lake Wales Ridge. While this ridge is not high by global standards (only reaching an elevation of about 300 feet), it can play a role in thunderstorm formation and progression due to its impacts on local wind patterns and slight elevation change.

Here are a couple of ways this ridge can influence thunderstorm activity:

Local Wind Patterns: The Central Florida Ridge can impact local wind patterns. The elevation and land cover difference between the ridge and the surrounding lower-lying areas can cause slight shifts in wind direction. These shifts may influence where sea breezes (coming from the east and the west coasts) collide, a phenomenon which often triggers thunderstorm formation.

Thermal Uplift: Although the elevation difference isn't huge, the ridge can enhance thermal uplift. When the sun heats up the land, the air above it rises, creating an updraft. Over higher ground, these updrafts can be more pronounced. Updrafts play a crucial role in thunderstorm development as they lead to cooler air aloft, aiding in the formation of storm clouds.

However, it's important to note that these effects are relatively small compared to other factors that influence thunderstorm development in Florida, such as the collision of sea breezes from the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, or the tropical moisture and heat that's often present. The role of the Central Florida Ridge in thunderstorm production in Florida is subtle and typically secondary to these larger scale factors.