It just means that light travels faster than sound does :)
There is a delay between seeing the lightning and hearing the thunder because the speed of light (lightning) is much faster than the speed of sound (thunder). Thus, you SEE lightning first, and then you HEAR thunder later.
If you mean hearing thunder right after a lightning, it is because sound travels slower than light, and thus, you would hear the thunder a bit later than seeing a lightning strike.
Lightning and thunder are phenomena that happen simultaneously but are observed at different times due to the difference in speed of light and sound. Light travels faster than sound, so we see the lightning flash first and then hear the thunder that follows it later.
The speed of light is faster than the speed of sound, therefore you see lightning first during a thunderstorm, then you hear the thunder. *yikes!* :) ilovecatz1234
Thunder and lightning occur roughly at the same time during a thunderstorm, but they are different things. Typically you see the lightning first and then you hear the thunder.
You see the lightening, and hear the thunder.
Thunder and lightning occur simultaneously. We often hear the thunder after seeing the lightning due to the distance between us observers and the source of the lightning. Light travels faster than sound, so we see the lightning first and hear the sound later.
lightning heats the air which we hear as thunder
You start hearing thunder when the rapid expansion of air near a lightning bolt creates a shockwave that travels through the atmosphere, causing the sound of thunder. Lightning and thunder typically occur almost simultaneously, but because light travels faster than sound, we see the lightning first and then hear the thunder a few seconds later.
You hear thunder after seeing lightning because lightning produces intense heat that causes the air to rapidly expand and create a shock wave. This shock wave is what we hear as thunder. The distance between you and the lightning strike can affect the time gap between seeing the lightning and hearing the thunder.
If you see lightning but don't hear thunder, it means the lightning is far away. The speed of light is much faster than the speed of sound, so you usually see lightning before you hear the associated thunder.
Heat lightning is just ordinary lightning that is too far away for you to hear the thunder.