I understand that it probably has something to do with how much interference there is in the air at the time. But is there an average distance, considering what the air is usually like?
You see lighting and hear 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.
If you hear thunder long after seeing lightning, it indicates the storm is moving away from you. Thunder is the sound produced by lightning, so the delay suggests the storm is at a significant distance. As long as the delay is significant enough, the risk of being struck by lightning is greatly reduced.
A lightning flash travels at the speed of light. The sound of thunder travels much slower. Therefore, we see the flash before we hear the thunder.
Thunder and lighting do occur together during a thunderstorm. Lightning is a sudden discharge of electricity in the atmosphere, which creates the bright light that we see, while thunder is the sound created by the rapid expansion of air around the lightning bolt. Light travels faster than sound, so we see the lightning before we hear the thunder.
You see lighting and hear thunder.
You see the lightening, and hear the thunder.
You don't see thunder. You hear thunder. You hear thunder after seeing the lightning because light travels faster than sound. The further the storm away is, the bigger the time between when you see the lightning and hear the thunder.
You often hear thunder when you see lightning because lightning produces a sudden and rapid heating of the air around it, causing it to expand quickly. This rapid expansion creates a shock wave that we hear as thunder. The farther away you are from the lightning, the longer it takes for the sound to reach you.
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.
You see lightning before you hear it because light moves faster than sound. Thunder comes from the lightning. You can't hear it until the sound waves reach you.
If you hear thunder long after seeing lightning, it indicates the storm is moving away from you. Thunder is the sound produced by lightning, so the delay suggests the storm is at a significant distance. As long as the delay is significant enough, the risk of being struck by lightning is greatly reduced.
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 lightning first because light travels faster then sound.Also, you don't see thunder - you hear it.
If you hear the thunder almost at the same time as the lightning flash - the storm is directly overhead. Usually - the sound of thunder arrives a few seconds after the lightning, because light travels much faster than sound.
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.
thundery rain means there is a chance you may hear thunder and see lightning during a heavy downpour