is it bc sound waves take longer to travel then light waves???
2007-07-06 02:27:06 · 11 answers · asked by Support the MCRmy 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Weather
Yea it is. the thunder is simply the sound of the electrical discharge that we saw as the lightning. Its the same reason why you'll see an aircraft travelling at speeds faster than the speed of sound pass by before you actually hear it.
2007-07-06 03:55:21 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. And of course the lightning produces the thunder sound.
Over the years there was a lot of speculation about how the sound is produced.
In the 20th century a consensus evolved that thunder must begin with a shock wave in the air due to the sudden thermal expansion of the plasma in the lightning channel. In a fraction of a second the air is heated to a temperature approaching 28,000 °C (50,000 °F)[1]. 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.
And when you think about it, nearby thunder does sound much like the shock wave of a aircraft.
2007-07-06 02:43:04 · answer #2 · answered by p v 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Thunder is the sound of lightning ripping apart the air molecules.
Its just because light travels faster than sound so u see the light before hearing the sound.
Thats why you can estimate the disatance of how far away the lightning is because the further away it is the larger the time difference of seeing the lightning and then hearing the thunder.
2007-07-06 02:33:47 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Thunder is the result of the explosion of super heated atmosphere. Light travels much faster than sound. Thunder is an accurate method to determine the distance of the lightening event.
2007-07-06 02:37:28 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The thunder heats the air so hot that it nearly explodes .It is the sudden expansion of the air. In the process each lightning strike creates about 300 lb. of NO2.
2007-07-06 02:32:20 · answer #5 · answered by JOHNNIE B 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because lightning is the friction of hot and cold air. When the friction stops it causes the electrons to make the loud CLAP noise....Peanuts are yummy... Quantum Physics. Pip PIP
2007-07-06 03:18:55 · answer #6 · answered by liljay0131 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, sound travels at very low speed compared to light. 1100 ft/second for sound compared to 186,000 miles/second for light
2007-07-06 02:29:52 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
Yes.
2007-07-06 02:30:04 · answer #8 · answered by U_Mex 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, not al all...it is simply the angels bowling.
2007-07-06 02:35:51 · answer #9 · answered by Perky_gurl 4 · 2⤊ 2⤋
You got it.
2007-07-06 02:30:02 · answer #10 · answered by ♫ Sweet Honesty ♫ 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋