Is it usually thunder first or lightning first?

Question

According to the link, "thunder is created when lightning passes through the air." So basically we could say they happen at the same time.

Answer 1

Lightening comes first, and is always accompanied by thunder afterwards. According to this link: "When lightning strikes, it causes the particles in the air all around it to vibrate. Since lightning is also very hot, it makes the air around it expand very quickly, which creates more vibrations as the particles get pushed. All those vibrations can make a big boom, which you hear as thunder." 

As we know lightning also travels at the speed of light, much faster than the speed of sound, hence why we see the flash before we hear the thunder.

Source: https://www.childrensmuseum.org/blog/why-do-you-see-lightning-first

Answer 2

This would be incorrect. Your answer is correct in some ways but what you are missing the emphasis. Thunder only occurs due to lightning. The imbalance in heat due to the lightning creates a shockwave that collides with the surrounding air. This causes the sound of thunder.

Here is some more information about the phenomena: https://scijinks.gov/lightning/

It must also be noted that light travels significantly faster than sound, which is the reason why we see lighting before we hear the accompanying thunder caused by the lightning.

Answer 3

This link is correct, thunder and lightning occur at the same time. Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. We see lightning before we hear thunder, but this is simply because light travels faster than sound. 

https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/storms/thunder-and-lightning

http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2016/ph240/thomas1/

Comments

I like your concise and clear explanation -- it's very easy to understand!

Answer 4

This claim begins as an open question, "is it usually thunder first or lightning first", but then raises the claim 'so basically we could say they happen at the same time' - due to the piece of data that claims "thunder is created when lightning passes through the air". Therefore, I will be researching this topic with the claim of 'so basically we could say they happen at the same time' in mind. 

According to a .gov source: 

"In nature, a lightning flash and the associated thunder occur at almost the same time in a thunderstorm.  A person on the ground sees the lightning flash before hearing the thunder because light at a speed of around 300,000,000 meters per second travels much faster than sound which moves at 340 meters per second.  If one is 1,000 meters away from the thunderstorm, he/she would see the flash almost instantly after lightning occurs as it takes just a few microseconds, while the thunder arrives only after about 3 seconds (1,000 meters divided by 340 meters per second)" (Why Does Lightning Always Come Before Thunder?). 

Lightning always comes with thunder. If one sees lighting but can not hear thunder, this means the storm is further away from you. In the above illustration, it is shown that a person 1km away from the thunderstorm hears the thunder about 3 seconds after seeing the lightning flash. 

According to an additional .edu reliable source: 

"Thunder and lightning occur at roughly the same time although you see the flash of lightning before you hear the thunder. This is because light travels much faster than sound" (Education, Ucar Center for Science. “Thunder and Lightning | Center for Science Education). 

While it is a challenge to provide a strong yes or no answer to this question because nature works in ways that are not always consistent or predictable - the claim of 'we could say they happen at the same time' in regard to lightning and thunder, would lean towards being TRUE. Even though humans may interpret or experience the phenomenon of thunder and lightning differently depending on where they stand in approximation to the storm, and light travels faster than sound - technically. without those two factors, thunder and lightning would occur at the same time. 

Works Cited/Sources

Education, Ucar Center for Science. “Thunder and Lightning | Center for Science Education.” UCAR, scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/storms/thunder-and-lightning#:~:text=Thunder%20and%20lightning%20occur%20at,travels%20much%20faster%20than%20sound.

Why Does Lightning Always Come Before Thunder? www.hko.gov.hk/en/education/weather/thunderstorm-and-lightning/00021-why-does-lightning-always-come-before-thunder.html.

Answer 5

We always see lightning before we hear thunder. In fact, it is not possible to even have thunder without lightning. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration explains lightning as a giant spark of electricity in the atmosphere between clouds, the air, or the ground. They explain that lightning causes thunder and thunder is when "Energy from a lightning channel heats the air briefly to around 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This causes the air to explode outward. The huge pressure in the initial outward shock wave decreases rapidly with increasing distance and within ten yards or so has become small enough to be perceived as the sound we call thunder." 

Lastly, light travels faster than sound so you can always keep that in mind. 

Source: https://www.nssl.noaa.gov/education/svrwx101/lightning/#:~:text=What%20is%20lightning%3F,the%20cloud%20and%20the%20ground. 

Answer 6

According to UCAR, "Lightning is a discharge of electricity. A single stroke of lightning can heat the air around it to 30,000°C (54,000°F)! This extreme heating causes the air to expand explosively fast. The expansion creates a shock wave that turns into a booming sound wave, known as thunder." It can be depicted that Lightning causes Thunder and it happens almost at the same time but we see the light first because light travels faster than sound.

https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/storms/thunder-and-lightning

Answer 7

You are correct that thunder is created when lightning passes through the air. Thunder is the sound that is produced by the rapid expansion of air surrounding a lightning bolt due to the intense heat generated by the lightning. As lightning travels through the air, it heats the air to temperatures hotter than the surface of the sun, causing the air to rapidly expand and create shock waves that result in the sound of thunder. Evidence: "Thunder is created when lightning passes through the air." 

Source: National Weather Service

https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-thunder#:~:text=Thunder%20is%20created%20when%20lightning,the%20surface%20of%20the%20sun

Answer 8

Technically thunder happens after lightning even if it is an unnoticeable difference because lighting causes thunder. When the lightning strikes, it heats the air around it which causes it to expand and then the air cools and contracts which is what causes the sound of thunder. "Thunder is the sound caused by a nearby flash of lightning and can be heard for a distance of only about 10 miles from the lightning strike. The sound of thunder should serve as a warning to anyone outside that they are within striking distance of the storm and need to get to a safe place immediately!" 

https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-thunder

Answer 9

Lightning and thunder do occur at the same time but they are not perceived by humans at the same time. Since light travels faster than sound, people on the ground see the lightning before they hear any thunder.

https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-thunder#:~:text=Thunder%20is%20created%20when%20lightning,the%20surface%20of%20the%20sun.

Answer 10

Thunder is merely a result of lighting. Thunder occurs when lighting passes through the air. Since lighting is static electricity, it’s movement through the sky causes a noise which is deemed as thunder. This only occurs after or as the lightning has struck. 

https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-thunder