Atmospheric instability is a condition where the Earth's atmosphere is generally considered to be unstable and as a result the weather is subject to a high degree of variability through distance and time. Atmospheric stability is a measure of the atmosphere's tendency to encourage or deter vertical motion, and vertical motion is directly correlated to different types of weather systems and their severity. In unstable conditions, a lifted parcel of air will be warmer than the surrounding air at altitude. Because it is warmer, it is less dense and is prone to further ascent.
In meteorology, instability can be described by various indices such as the Bulk Richardson Number, lifted index, K-index, convective available potential energy, the Showalter, and the Vertical totals. These indices, as well as atmospheric instability itself, involve temperature changes through the troposphere with height, or lapse rate. Effects of atmospheric instability in moist atmospheres include thunderstorm development, which over warm oceans can lead to tropical cyclogenesis, and turbulence. In dry atmospheres, inferior mirages, dust devils, steam devils, and fire whirls can form. Stable atmospheres can be associated with drizzle, fog, increased air pollution, a lack of turbulence, and undular bore formation.
Read more about Atmospheric Instability: Forms, Cause of Instability, Indices Used For Its Determination
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