Thunder is caused by the rapid expansion of air surrounding a lightning bolt. When lightning strikes, it superheats the air along its path, causing it to expand rapidly. This expansion creates shockwaves that we hear as thunder. The intensity of the thunder is influenced by factors like the distance from the lightning, atmospheric conditions, and the lightning's power.
Understanding the science behind thunder adds a fascinating layer to the awe-inspiring phenomenon of thunderstorms.
Technically, lightning is the movement of electrical charges and doesn’t have a temperature; however, resistance to the movement of these electrical charges causes the materials that the lightning is passing through to heat up.
If an object is a good conductor of electricity, it won’t heat up as much as a poor conductor. Air is a very poor conductor of electricity and gets extremely hot when lightning passes through it. In fact, lightning can heat the air it passes through to 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit (5 times hotter than the surface of the sun).
When lightning strikes a tree, the heat vaporizes any water in its path possibly causing the tree to explode or a strip of bark to be blown off.
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