Does that makes sense? So the time Lightning flashes and thunder roars apparently that is the distance if you count in seconds between them the kilometers the storm is from your home.
2007-02-19 12:06:25 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Weather
Lightening is a huge electrical discharge which superheats the air around it. The air expands so fast that it causes a sonic bang - thunder.
Both lightning and thunder are created at precisely the same moment but because light travels much faster than sound you see the lightning before you hear the thunder.
Light is so fast that the time between the lightning and you seeing it is virtually nil - it's so fast it travels round the equator 7 times a second.
Sound by comparison is slow and travels one mile in five seconds, one kilometre in three seconds.
From the time you see the flash of light count off the seconds until you hear the thunder. Divide by 5 to determine how many miles away the lightning was, divide by three for kilometres.
Because a stroke of lightning is long - many miles long, one end of it might be much closer to you than the other end. The sound from the nearest end reaches you first but the sound from the furthest end can take several more seconds to reach you - this is why thunder rumbles for several seconds.
2007-02-19 12:14:27 · answer #1 · answered by Trevor 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The rule for Lightning and Thunder is this, and it is an estimate.
When you see lightning start counting seconds. Stop counting when you hear the Thunder.
If your count is 5, the Lightning was 1 mile away.
If your count was 10, the lightning was 2 miles away.
If your count was 15, the lightning was 3 miles away.
If your count was 20, the lightning was 4 miles away.
If your count was 25, the lightning was 5 miles away.
If your count was 30, the lightning was 6 miles away.
If your count was 35. the lightning was 7 miles away.
I suppose higher counts are possible, but not too likely, as the sound of the Thunder will not always reach your ear at greater distances, depending upon atmospheric conditions.
1.0 Mile = 1.6 Kilometers
2007-02-19 12:14:54 · answer #2 · answered by wxguy22 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Estimating distance of a lightning strike: The flash of a lightning strike and resulting thunder occur at roughly the same time. But light travels at 300,000 kilometers in a second, almost a million times the speed of sound. Sound travels at the slower speed of 344 m/s in the same time, so the flash of lightning is seen before thunder is heard. By counting the seconds between the flash and the thunder and dividing by 3, you can estimate your distance from the strike and initially the actual storm cell (in kilometers). Similarly, by dividing by 5, you can estimate the distance in miles.
2007-02-19 20:46:36 · answer #3 · answered by paul13051956 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
style of seconds (mississippi) divided via 5 supplies approximately how some distance away the hurricane is. EX ..... LIGHTNING one million mississippi 2 mississippi 3 mississippi 4 mississippi 5 mississippi 6 mississippi THUNDER divide 6/5 to get one million and one million/5 The lighting fixtures is one million and one million/5 miles far flung from you.
2016-10-16 01:23:10 · answer #4 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes, the sound travels with 300m/s and the light is pretty much instantaneous. so you multiply the time between the thunder and the lightning by 300m and you have the distance. 300 m is about 1000 feet.
2007-02-19 12:13:34 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
"The speed of sound is 770mph but a mile is 6,076 feet"
That is a nautical mile. A mile is 5280ft.
2007-02-19 16:09:36 · answer #6 · answered by tentofield 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The speed of sound is 770mph but a mile is 6,076 feet.
Can you do the calculations?
2007-02-19 12:33:50 · answer #7 · answered by Kevin A 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋