Question: How often does a thunderstorm hit Hawaii?
Answer: Not often. Thunderstorms are uncommon in Hawaii, and the few thunderstorms that does hit the islands are generally short lived and mild.
Here's a chart detailing the amount of thunderstorms that hit Hilo (the rainiest populated area in Hawaii) in 2013, along with a few other locations that's near a large body of water:
Location | J | F |
M |
A |
M |
J |
J |
A |
S |
O |
N |
D |
TOTAL |
Boston, Massachusetts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
Chicago, Illinois | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 41 |
Hilo, Hawaii | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
Miami, Florida | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 57 |
New Orleans, Louisiana | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 24 |
Salt lake City, Utah | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 29 |
Seattle, Washington | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Isn't it interesting that Hilo, a warm tropical location with an average annual precipitation of 126.72 inches, sees fewer thunderstorms than the colder Seattle?