On a standard day at sea level static conditions, the speed of sound is about 760 mph, or 1100 feet/second . We can use this knowledge to approximately determine how far away a lightning strike has occurred. When lightning strikes, a bright flash of light is generated.
How long does it take sound to travel 1 mile?
Thunder travels much slower, at the speed of sound, about 1088 feet per second. It takes sound about 5 seconds to travel one mile.
How many seconds does sound take to travel?
As you can see, the speed of sound changes depending on the temperature and the humidity; but if you want a round number, then something like 350 meters per second and 1,200 feet per second are reasonable numbers to use. So sound travels 1 kilometer in roughly 3 seconds and 1 mile in roughly 5 seconds .
How many miles is faster than the speed of sound?
The speed of light as it travels through air and space is much faster than that of sound; it travels at 300 million meters per second or 273,400 miles per hour . ... Speed of light in water = 226 million m/s or 205,600 mph.
How far away is thunder when you hear it?
Thunder is the sound caused by a nearby flash of lightning and can be heard for a distance of only about 10 miles from the lightning strike. The sound of thunder should serve as a warning to anyone outside that they are within striking distance of the storm and need to get to a safe place immediately!
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 .
How long does it take sound to travel 6 miles?
The speed of sound changes depending on temperature and humidity but one can estimate that sound travels 1 mile in roughly 5 seconds .
Is lightning faster than sound?
Lightning and thunder happen at the same time. But you see lightning before you hear thunder because light, which travels a million times faster than sound , arrives almost instantly. Sound, on the other hand, takes about five seconds to travel one mile.
How fast does sound travel through concrete?
| Solid Speed of Sound (m/s) | Longitudal Shear | Concrete 3700 3200 | Constantan 5177 2625 | Copper, annealed 4760 2325 |
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How fast is a flash of lightning?
1. The speed of lightning. While the flashes we see as a result of a lightning strike travel at the speed of light (670,000,000 mph) an actual lightning strike travels at a comparatively gentle 270,000 mph .
Is lightning hotter than the sun?
In fact, lightning can heat the air it passes through to 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit ( 5 times hotter than the surface of the sun ). When lightning strikes a tree, the heat vaporizes any water in its path possibly causing the tree to explode or a strip of bark to be blown off.
How fast is 90% the speed of sound?
| Miles Per Hour Speed Of Sound | 70 mph 0.091233 sound | 80 mph 0.104266 sound | 90 mph 0.117299 sound | 100 mph 0.130332 sound |
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How long does sound take to travel 12 miles?
| Speed Of Sound Miles Per Hour | 12 sound 9,207 mph | 13 sound 9,974 mph | 14 sound 10,742 mph | 15 sound 11,509 mph |
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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.
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.
Why is lightning so loud?
It's because the amount of electrical energy that flows from the cloud to the ground is so enormous : it's like a very big waterfall of electricity. The louder the sound that you hear, the closer you are to the lightning. Light travels through air much faster than sound.
Does every lightning strike hit the ground?
Does lightning strike from the sky down, or the ground up? The answer is both . Cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning comes from the sky down, but the part you see comes from the ground up. A typical cloud-to-ground flash lowers a path of negative electricity (that we cannot see) towards the ground in a series of spurts.
Are airplanes safe from lightning?
While some travelers may feel that this would be an unpleasant experience, modern jetliners are designed to cope with lightning strikes . They go through specific lightning tests to make sure they can withstand hits as part of their certification. Most incidents are over in, well, a flash.
What is Spider lightning?
Spider lightning refers to long, horizontally traveling flashes often seen on the underside of stratiform clouds . Spider lightning is often linked to +CG flashes.
How far away can you see a cumulonimbus?
The top of a cumulonimbus cloud is usually about 40,000 feet and can reach heights of over 60,000 feet, which would be visible for a distance of 245 or 300 miles , respectively.
What is the speed of sound at 30000 ft?
The speed of sound (Mach 1) varies with altitude and temperature. If an aircraft is travelling at the speed of sound at sea-level then its speed will be 661 knots (760 miles per hour) or if it is travelling at the speed of sound at 30,000 feet then its speed will be 589 knots (677 miles per hour).
What happens when you break the sound barrier?
As this wave-front passes an individual, the sudden pressure differential or change in pressure creates the “sonic boom” that we hear . Anything exceeding the speed of sound creates a “sonic boom”, not just airplanes. An airplane, a bullet, or the tip of a bullwhip can create this effect; they all produce a crack.
What Mach speed is the speed of sound?
Near and beyond the speed of sound, about 330 m/s or 760 mph , small disturbances in the flow are transmitted to other locations isentropically or with constant entropy. But a sharp disturbance generates a shock wave that affects both the lift and drag of an aircraft.
How fast is a thunder?
Thunder travels at the speed of sound and has a value of about 340 meters per second . The speed of sound in air at sea level moves about 1 mile every 5 seconds.
What's the speed of dark?
Darkness travels at the speed of light . More accurately, darkness does not exist by itself as a unique physical entity, but is simply the absence of light.
What happens to the human body when struck by lightning?
Dr. Griggs says if a person is struck by lightning, it can cause cardiac arrest, which stops a person's body from circulating blood and cause direct injury to the brain and nervous system, preventing the brain from being able to send the appropriate signals to tell the body to continue breathing.
