Isolated vs. Scattered

Tommy from Cushing asks:

“What is the difference between isolated storms and scattered storms?”

Isolated and scattered both refer to areal coverage.  Isolated refers to hit and miss.  We don’t expect that many storms.  That might equate to a 20-30% chance for rain at any one location.

Scattered would indicate a better chance for storms.  Rain chances would be between 40-60%. 

The other category would be numerous.  When we forecast numerous thunderstorms, the radar should be pretty full.

You really shouldn’t say “there’s a 20% chance for isolated thunderstorms.”  It’s redundant.  You should either say “there’s a 20% chance for thunderstorms,” or “there are isolated thunderstorms in the forecast.”

Andy