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BLOGS 2 LIGHTNING FACTS
Lightning Facts * The maximum distance you can hear thunder is as short as two (2) miles and seldom exceeds twelve (12) miles. Many factors contribute to this wide range, some of which are wind speed, wind direction, terrain, ambient noise and the origin of the return stroke. *
Sound is generated along the length of the lightning channel as the atmosphere is heated by the electrical discharge to the order of 55,000 degrees F (5 times the temperature of the surface of the sun). This compresses the surrounding air producing a shock wave, which rapidly decays to a sound pressure wave as it propagates away from the lightning channel. *
The average lightning bolt is 6-8 miles long and can easily travel 25 to 40 miles horizontally prior to turning downward toward the ground. In October 2001, the visual lightning detection system measured a single bolt that traveled from Waco to Fort Worth and then Dallas, Texas – a total distance of more than 110 miles * It is almost soothing to hear the low rumble of thunder off in the distance as a storm approaches, yet the very sound of thunder indicates that you are in immediate danger.
The forward and backward reach of lightning far outruns your ability to hear its thunder. When you hear thunder (even faint thunder) you are in danger of a lightning strike. When the leading edge of a thunderstorm is within 10 miles you are at immediate risk due to lightning's out reach. In fact, many lightning deaths and injuries occur with clear skies directly overhead. Example * Many cloud-to-ground lightning flashes have forked or multiple attachment points to earth.
Tests carried out in the US and Japan verify this finding in at least half of negative flashes and more than 70% of positive flashes. Many lightning detectors cannot acquire accurate information about these multiple ground lightning attachments. * Lightning can travel over the surface of the ground and through the ground. The ground surface can be lethal for up to 60 feet radius or more from the point of contact.
This also includes a ground rod as the point of contact. In water, the lethal radius is about 600 feet from point of contact. * The temperature of lightning's return stroke is (5) five times hotter than the surface of the sun. It can reach about 55,000 degrees Fahrenheit in contrast to about 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit for the surface of the sun.
This high temperature will immediately turn water or water vapor into high pressure superheated steam. This high pressure steam can explode the clothes off your body, explode the bark from a tree, explode concrete, drywall, wood or any material containing even small amounts of moisture..
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