Why is it that we hear the rumbling thunder few seconds after the lightning?

Immediately after the flash, the air cools and contracts quickly. This rapid expansion and contraction creates the sound wave that we hear as thunder. Since you see lightning immediately and it takes the sound of thunder about 5 seconds to travel a mile, you can calculate the distance between you and the lightning.

What causes long rumbling thunder?

The answer to the constant rumbling you hear in storms is a simple one: it’s thunder. For a constant rumbling, you would need a lot of lightning. Each lightning strike is hot enough to expand the air violently which sends the sound waves to your years.

Why do you see lightning first and then hear thunder later?

If we are watching the sky, we see the lightning before we hear the thunder. That is because light travels much faster than sound waves. We can estimate the distance of the lightning by counting how many seconds it takes until we hear the thunder. It takes approximately 5 seconds for the sound to travel 1 mile.

Why does some thunder sound like a bomb?

What sounded like an explosion, this rare weather phenomenon is actually caused when the air close to the ground is warm enough to cause a thunderstorm, while the cold air above produces snow. So this explains the explosive sound and the rude awakening for some.

Why is there thunder but no lightning?

No, it is not possible to have thunder without lightning. Thunder starts as a shockwave from the explosively expanding lightning channel when a large current causes rapid heating. However, it is possible that you might see lightning and not hear the thunder because it was too far away. Thunder is caused by lightning.

Whats faster lightning or thunder?

Lightning travels at the speed of light, about 186,000 miles per second. When lightning strikes, a noise is made which we call thunder. Thunder travels much slower, at the speed of sound, about 1088 feet per second. It takes sound about 5 seconds to travel one mile.

Is really loud thunder bad?

Other than the threat of the lightning itself, does thunder — especially very loud thunder — pose any threat to people near the lightning strike? The shock wave and thunder (at very close range to the lightning bolt) can cause property damage, but no injuries have been reported.