Without the aid of anyone or anything, how is it possible to tell how far away a thunderstorm is, from where you stand?
2007-03-19 02:50:06 · 7 answers · asked by Kathy B 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Geography
Just to be a smarta$$...the speed of sound in water is almost five times faster than in air. So, perhaps alunser and jdavis were standing underwater. LOL
2007-03-19 06:12:56 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes. From the moment you see a lightning strike, count the number of seconds it takes before you hear thunder. That is the approximate number of miles a thunderstorm is. When lightning strikes, the air is so hot and moving so fast it makes a loud noise,thunder. It takes time for sound to travel and it is approximately one second for one mile.
2007-03-22 22:29:32 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A fairly good but rough estimate is to count the time from a lightning discharge and the time you hear the thunder. There will be a delay of 5 seconds for every mile of distance.
2007-03-19 09:56:41 · answer #3 · answered by Gene 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Count the seconds between the lightning flash and its subsequent thunder, and multiply by the speed of sound
It's about 1 mile (1.6 km) for every 5 seconds
2007-03-19 09:54:35 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
well.. when you see a flash of lightning immediately start counting 1.. 2.. 3.. and so on then for example, you were on 5 and heard thunder.. the thunderstorm is 5 miles away
2007-03-19 09:58:48 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
Al Unser and Jdavis are wrong. The speed of sound is about 1100 feet per second. That's about 5 seconds per mile... not 1 second per mile.
2007-03-19 10:03:15 · answer #6 · answered by Surveyor 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, when you see a lighting strike, count 1000 one...until you hear thunder. That is how many miles away the thunderstorm is.
2007-03-19 09:55:20 · answer #7 · answered by Guess Who 6 · 0⤊ 3⤋