Thunder travels much slower, at the speed of sound, about 1088 feet per second. It takes sound about 5 seconds to travel one mile . You can observe this for yourself.
How fast is lightning in miles?
Whats faster lightning or thunder? Lightning travels at the speed of light, about 186,000 miles per second . ... When lightning strikes, a noise is made which we call thunder.
How far does lightning travel per second?
When lightning strikes, a bright flash of light is generated. Light travels at a constant 186,000 miles/second , which means that we see the flash immediately as it happens.
Does sound travel at 1 mile per second?
In air at a temperature of 70° F (22.2° C), sound travels at a speed of about 1,129 feet (344 meters) per second , which is roughly equivalent to one-fifth of a mile in one second, or one mile in five seconds (or one kilometer in about three seconds).
Does counting seconds after lightning work?
A general rule of thumb to know how far off a bolt of lightning is when you hear thunder, if you count the number of seconds between the flash of lightning and the sound of thunder, and then divide by 5, you’ll get the distance in miles to the lightning : 5 seconds = 1 mile, 15 seconds = 3 miles, 0 seconds = very close.
How far away is thunder after lightning?
After you see a flash of lightning, count the number of seconds until you hear the thunder. (Use the stop watch or count “One-Mississippi, Two-Mississippi, Three-Mississippi,” etc.) For every 5 seconds the storm is one mile away . Divide the number of seconds you count by 5 to get the number of miles.
Is lightning faster than a bullet?
That is faster than a bullet fired from an assault rifle- 1000 metres per second . A natural disaster poses serious risks to your life, liberty and limb.
Which is first thunder or lightning?
If we are watching the sky, we see the lightning before we hear the thunder . That is because light travels much faster than sound waves. We can estimate the distance of the lightning by counting how many seconds it takes until we hear the thunder.
Can you have thunder without lightning?
No, it is not possible to have thunder without lightning . Thunder starts as a shockwave from the explosively expanding lightning channel when a large current causes rapid heating. However, it is possible that you might see lightning and not hear the thunder because it was too far away.
How far away can thunder be heard?
Thunder can be heard up to 25 miles away, and lightning strikes have been documented to occur as far as 25 miles from thunderstorms – known as a “bolt from the blue.” So if you can hear thunder, you’re close enough to be hit by lightning, and sheltering indoors or in an enclosed car is your safest bet.
How Far Can lightning travel?
Lightning can travel 10 to 12 miles from a thunderstorm. This is often farther than the sound of thunder travels. That means that if you can hear thunder you are close enough to a storm to be in danger of being struck by lightning. When thunder roars go indoors.
How far away can lightning be seen?
All lightning comes from a thunderstorm, but you can see that lightning many miles away from a storm when the sky is clear (clear away from the storm, of course). How far? Depending on visibility conditions, you can see lightning from as far as 150 to 200 miles away on a dark summer night .
Does thunder always follow lightning?
Thunder always follows lightning . A lightning bolt heats the air through which it passes — a tube of air perhaps a half inch in diameter — to at least 50,000 degrees. The sudden heating followed by rapid cooling sets up an expansion-contraction sequence that generates atmospheric waves that we hear as thunder.
What makes the rumbling sound of thunder?
Thunder is the sound caused by lightning . Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning produces rapid expansion of the air in the path of a lightning bolt.
What does it mean when thunder is really loud?
The louder-than-normal thunder are common in Elevated Thunderstorms . These storms start to rise from the warm, muggy air above the ground. The typical surface based storms that we get in the summer, that may not be as loud, rise from the ground with the warm at the ground or surface.
What is the 30 30 rule for lightning?
Don’t forget the 30-30 rule. After you see lightning, start counting to 30 . If you hear thunder before you reach 30, go indoors. Suspend activities for at least 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder.
What is the sound of thunder in words?
One common word for the sound is a thunderclap .
How loud is lightning right next to you?
A clap of thunder typically registers at about 120 dB in close proximity to the ground stroke. This is 10 times louder than a garbage truck or pneumatic jackhammer drill. By comparison, sitting in front of speakers at a rock concert can expose you to a continuous 120+ dB level.
Is anything faster than light?
Albert Einstein’s special theory of relativity famously dictates that no known object can travel faster than the speed of light in vacuum , which is 299,792 km/s. This speed limit makes it unlikely that humans will ever be able to send spacecraft to explore beyond our local area of the Milky Way.
Is Thunder a sonic boom?
Sonic boom is an impulsive noise similar to thunder . It is caused by an object moving faster than sound — about 750 miles per hour at sea level. An aircraft traveling through the atmosphere continuously produces air-pressure waves similar to the water waves caused by a ship’s bow.
Can a car go faster than a bullet?
In 1997, British Royal Air Force fighter pilot Andy Green broke the world land-speed record at 763 miles per hour (1228 kilometers per hour)—literally faster than some bullets . Now he’s gunning for a new record in 2012—driving 1000 mph (1609 km/h) in the new Bloodhound supersonic car.
Can lightning strike a car?
According to NBC 12, a lightning bolt is so powerful that it could actually go through the tires and melt them . In reality, it’s the car’s metal cage that protects the occupants, not the tires. Of course, that might not make sense at first, considering metal is a good conductor of electricity.
Where does lightning strike the most?
Central Africa is the area of the world where lightning strikes most frequently.
