![]() Watch as those puffing cumulus clouds start to form. Warm, humid summer days are the times when thunderstorms are most likely to develop, especially in the afternoons, as the sun heats the air and heat rises into the atmosphere. Predicting Lightningįirst, know that every thunderstorm produces lightning. This is why we have 30-minute safety rules. Lightning threats continue much longer period than most people realize. When the storm passes and the skies turn blue again, don’t be fooled. Stay inside for at least 30 minutes after hearing the last clap of thunder.If you hear thunder before you reach 30, seek shelter indoors immediately.(Use the stop watch or count “One-Mississippi, Two-Mississippi, Three-Mississippi,” etc.) After you see lightning, start counting to 30. ![]() If the time between the lightning flash and the crack of thunder is 30 seconds or less, the lightning is about 6 miles away or closer. According to safety experts, the time to take cover is 6 miles, at minimum. Lightning often strikes from 3 to 6 miles away, though it can be as far as 10 miles. How do you calculate the distance of a thunderstorm?ĭon’t be fooled by blue skies. If the resulting number was 10 seconds, the lightning was 2 miles away. The resulting number will tell you how many miles away you are from where lightning just struck.įor example, if that resulting number was 5 seconds, then the lightning struck 1 mile away. When you see a flash of lightning, start counting the seconds until you hear the following thunder. The giant discharge flows somewhere and about 25% of the time- BANG!-it hits the ground. Finally, the charges equal out, just like that irritating spark that stings you when you touch something. The slush near the bottom of the cloud builds up a negative charge while the tiny ice crystals carried to the top become positive. ![]() What you are watching are spectacular electric sparks! Just as you build up static charges when you shuffle your feet along a carpet, so do the collision of ice and slush churning in a thundercloud build up charges.
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