I always thought mammatus clouds meant a big storm was coming

I was reading a weather book from the library in Springfield and it said mammatus clouds often show up after a storm has passed, not before. I saw some last month over my house and sure enough, the heavy rain had already moved east. It really made me question the old saying. Has anyone else found that to be true where you live?

3 comments

3 Comments

valgibson2mo ago

Yep, they usually mean the worst is over.

green.jessica2mo ago

But what if it's just the calm before another storm?

victorclark1mo ago

Oh wow, I actually gotta push back on that a bit. Where I live in the plains, I've seen mammatus clouds show up right before a big storm rolls in, not after. I remember one time last summer, they were hanging over the field for maybe 20 minutes, then boom, a nasty hailstorm hit. Maybe it's just me but I think it depends on what kind of storm system it is, like if it's a supercell or just a regular thunderstorm. I've also read some stuff online that says the old saying might be right for some areas but not for others, so I wouldn't write it off completely.