Why Does It Thunder And Lightning?

Question

Why does it exactly 'Thunder' and 'Lightning'?
My mother always told me when i was a little girl, that the clouds are fighting, Thats why it makes such noise. I believed her too, LOL.
Just want to know why exactly it happens?
Something to do with the earths plates moving? Or is that volcanoes? Sensible answers please. Thanks

Answer 1

In the build up to a thunderstorm the positive and negative charges in the clouds separate out with the base of the clouds becoming negatively charges and the upper clouds becoming positively charged. Positive charges also built up on the ground, tall buildings, trees, mountains etc.

When the difference between positive and negative becomes great enough we get a lightning strike, a giant spark. Often lightning is within the clouds themselves but of course, it can also be between the clouds and earth.

Immediately before the main stroke of lightning a negatively charged Stepped Leader descends from the clouds in a zigzag path, each step beng abouit 100 metres long. As it approaches the ground a positively charged Streamer makes it's way upwards until the two meet and a channel is made between earth and clouds.

An electrical current then makes it's way up the channel which triggers the Return Stroke - the bright flash we see as lightning.

This discharge is extremely hot and causes the air surrounding it to heat up rapidly, as it heats it rapidly expands then contracts, this happens so fast that the moving air breaks the sound barrier creating a Sonic Boom, this is the sound we hear as thunder.

Here's a couple of websites that explain in more detail...
http://science.howstuffworks.com/lightning.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning

Answer 2

I was told thunder was clouds rubbing together. And i believed that for years!!

To set you on the straight and narrow, lightning is formed by charge separation. The exact science is still debatable, but what you need to konw is that a charge builds up in the cloud, with an equal and opposite charge induced below.

Ionised air connects the 2 and allows the passage of electric charge. An electical discharge occurs. This can be from cloud to ground or ground to cloud. This is visible as lightning.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning

This discharge superheats the air. In a fraction of a second the air is heated to a temperature approaching 28,000 °C (50,000 °F). This heating causes it to expand outward, plowing into the surrounding cooler air at a speed faster than sound would travel in that cooler air. The outward-moving pulse that results is a shock wave, similar in principle to the shock wave formed by an explosion, or at the front of a supersonic aircraft. The shockwave produces a noise, which we know as thunder.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thunder

Answer 3

► the earths plates moving
Plate tectonics causes earthquakes and volcanoes.

What is lightning:
http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/primer/lightning/ltg_basics.html

On a column on the right side of the page - click the links - and the answer sort of "pops up"

LIGHTNING FAQs

* What is lightning?
* Does lightning strike from the sky down, or the ground up?
* Can you have lightning without thunder?
* How long can a lightning bolt be?
* What are cloud flashes?
* What is a "stepped leader?"
* Is lightning always produced by a thunderstorm?
* How hot can lightning make the air?
* What causes thunder?
* What is dry lightning?

Answer 4

I was told that lightning was created when the clouds or something cause friction. The friction transfers as electrical energy. Thunder is simply the sound created by lightning. You don't hear thunder and see lightning at the same time because light travels faster than sound so if you did you'd be dead.

Answer 5

Unstable air rising causes the cumulonimbus clouds to form, when that happens up drafts and down drafts occur, when this happens and it happens to side by side, collisions occur within the clouds. These colliding raindrops or hail knock electricity out them causing a positive and negavtive charges to build up, when it gets too much to handle, lightning occurs, the thunder is caused by the super heating of the air around it to expand very rapidly, this sudden expansion is the sound we hear as thunder. Since sound travels slower than light, one mile is equal to about five seconds.

Answer 6

Well its thunders and lightings because to oppistes etract so heat and coldness come to gether so that make thunder and then the lighint is just the extra cemicals comming of the thunder!!!

Answer 7

Nope. Thunderbolt and lightning-very very frightening me- Galileo,galileo, Galileo galileo Galileo figaro-magnifico- But Im just a poor boy and nobody loves me- Hes just a poor boy from a poor family- Spare him his life from this monstrosity- Easy come easy go-,will you let me go-

Answer 8

its all with high pressure and low pressure causing wind and thunder oops ive forgot rest

Answer 9

see actually it happens due to transmission of charged particles in clouds..
clouds r either negatively or positively charged .......
n when they acquire a lot of charge ........they get attracted to opposite charge.................n thus they r transmitted from one charge to another.......causing lightening..

n due to this transmission.....there is expansion in air.....which we can hear as thunder..