Thunders are sound phenomena generated by the movement of electrical charges in the atmosphere. The sounds of thunder occur due to sudden heating and rapid expansion of the air, thus producing a strong pressure that manifests itself through sound, called thunder. Thunder, which most often causes just a scare in people, can spread both in the air and on the ground. As is already known, they are sound waves and, as such, have a frequency that depends on the medium in which they propagate.
The sound of thunder always comes after lightning, which is the luminous part visible to the human eye. This is because the speed of light is much higher than that of sound. The sound that the human ear hears is a combination of three moments that occur very quickly during the propagation of the air discharge.
First there is a short snapping sound (a high-pitched sound that can make a person deaf), then a loud and of longer duration than the first, and finally the expansion of bass sounds through the atmosphere around the lightning. Sometimes the perception of sound can be different, but the order of magnitude of thunder is the same as lightning. That's why you should stay away from regions that are likely to be hit by lightning.
Because of the frequency of sound waves in the air, thunder is more severe in the air than on the ground. These airborne thunders are very similar to a bass drum beat, and the duration of a thunder is, on average, 5 to 20 seconds.
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By Marco Aurélio da Silva
Brazil School Team
waves - Physics - Brazil School
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
SANTOS, Marco Aurélio da Silva. "The sounds of thunder"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/fisica/sons-trovoes.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
