07-05-2025
Texas Thunderstorm Hits 70,000 Feet Tall: 'Unreal'
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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A Texas thunderstorm hit 70,000 feet tall on Wednesday morning, roughly twice the height where commercial jets fly.
Why It Matters
The thunderstorm comes amid a series of severe storms that have moved through Texas this week. Numerous tornado warnings were issued on Tuesday, although most storm-related warnings have expired, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
What To Know
MyRadarX senior meteorologist Matthew Cappucci shared a radar clip of the storm to X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday.
"UNREAL. This thunderstorm over far south Texas on Wednesday morning is 70,000 FEET TALL," Cappucci posted with the clip. "It has officially surpassed the end of our color scale at @MyRadarWX. That makes it roughly TWICE the height that normal commercial jets operate at; likely a mile plus into stratosphere."
UNREAL. This thunderstorm over far south Texas on Wednesday morning is 70,000 FEET TALL.
It has officially surpassed the end of our color scale at @MyRadarWX.
That makes it roughly TWICE the height that normal commercial jets operate at; likely a mile plus into stratosphere. — Matthew Cappucci (@MatthewCappucci) May 7, 2025
Cappucci went on to add that the height of the storm could produce cantaloupe-sized hail. However, nearby storms started to merge, disrupting the large thunderstorm from producing that size of hail.
"Instead, it probably dropped baseballs or larger over Nuevo León and Tamaulipas in Mexico, and now is set to drop 2 inch hail on parts of Zapata County, Texas, including Escobas, San Ygnacio, Las Palmas, and Bustamante," Cappucci posted.
Exceptionally tall thunderstorms are more common in warm, moist environments, such as across the Southern Plains, Gulf Coast and into Florida. They are capable of heavy rain, strong winds and hail.
Although most severe weather alerts have expired, the NWS office in Brownsville in South Texas warned that a marginal risk of severe weather is in place for parts of its forecast region Wednesday evening.
A stock photo of a large storm in Texas.
A stock photo of a large storm in Texas.
Minerva Studio/Getty
What People Are Saying
NWS Weather Prediction Center meteorologist Scott Kleebauer told Newsweek: "Thunderstorms can come in all kinds of need a lot of moisture and instability in order to have thunderstorms that can have really high cloud tops. During summertime, it's not unusual for storms to reach 50,000 feet pretty easily, especially across the Southern U.S.; 70,000-foot tops are actually pretty rare, but we do see them on occasion during the year."
NWS Brownsville, on X: "There remains a Marginal Risk [level 1 of 5] of severe weather for the northern half of the northern ranchlands for this afternoon through tonight. The primary threats will be winds around 58 mph or greater and large hail."
What Happens Next
More rain is expected to hit South Texas later this week. Showers and thunderstorms are expected on Thursday and Friday, NWS Brownsville said on X. Following the storms, "pleasant weather" is expected.
