How loud can thunder get?

Answer 1

Well, according to the Oklahoma University Meteorology records, the loudest thunder clap ever recorded, was recorded in 2003, with the decibel meter hitting an astonishing 712.7! It was said to be as close as 8 meters away. Thanks for the question, hope I helped. :).

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That figure seems suspect - was the meter over-loaded? I recall my texts showing that the maximum sound-level in dB can only represent that of 1Bar, i.e. about 163dB re20µPa peak-to-peak. A little consideration shows that any higher amplitude would call for the -ve, or rarefaction, half-cycle of the sound-wave to drop below (minus 0.5)Bar: is that possible?

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Let's suppose it was, and we could have a sound level that drops the rarefied half-cycle to minus-1Bar, which would be a complete vacuum, albeit instantaneously. That has doubled the intensity from the level above, but in dB counting that only increases the level by 6dB: so (163 + 6) = 169 dB re 20µPa.

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OK, let's take a micro-Pascal (= 1 / 100 000 000 000 Bar) as our reference instead of the conventional 20 of them for airborne sound. Even that only adds 26dB, so the theoretical absolute maximum sound pressure level in air could be no more than 195dB re 1µPa - but that's a fudge because all I've done is change the decibel scale's reference value from 20 to 1 micro-Pascal. The pressure itself has not changed.

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Further, that 712.7dB equates to such an incredibly high pressure that I am incredulous of it and suspect the instrument was over-loaded and broke, or more likely, it was mis-read and mis-reported.

Answer 2

Well , a chainsaw is 125 decibels , a car horn is 110, a shotgun is 170.A handgun is about 166.

I know i wouldn't want to test thunder.

Here are some other noises :

10 normal breathing

20 whispering at 5 feet

30 soft whisper

40 quiet residential area

50 refrigerator

50 - 75 washing machine

50 - 75 air conditioner

50 - 80 electric shaver

55 - 70 dishwasher

60 normal conversation

65 - 80 alarm clock

70 TV audio

70 - 80 coffee grinder

70 - 95 garbage disposal

75 - 85 flush toilet

80 pop-up toaster

80 ringing telephone

80 - 90 blender

80 - 95 garbage disposal

110 shouting in ear

110 baby crying

120 ambulance siren

140 airplane taking off

143 bicycle horn

150 jet engine at take off

150 firecracker

Answer 3

Thunder can reach sound levels of up to 120-130 decibels close to the strike point, which is equivalent to the sound of a military jet taking off. However, most thunder heard at a safe distance is usually around 70-100 decibels, comparable to a chainsaw or a jackhammer.

Answer 4

quite loud because the air expand from the lightning bolt and boom

Answer 5

100000000 decibels now go get a life

Answer 6

It's pretty loud...

Answer 7

very