How loud is lightning right next to you?

A clap of thunder typically registers at about 120 dB in close proximity to the ground stroke. This is 10 times louder than a garbage truck or pneumatic jackhammer drill. By comparison, sitting in front of speakers at a rock concert can expose you to a continuous 120+ dB level.
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What happens if lightning strikes next to you?

Griggs says if a person is struck by lightning, it can cause cardiac arrest, which stops a person's body from circulating blood and cause direct injury to the brain and nervous system, preventing the brain from being able to send the appropriate signals to tell the body to continue breathing.
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What does it sound like when lightning hits near you?

Typically, a sharp crack or click will indicate that the lightning channel passed nearby. If the thunder sounds more like a rumble, the lightning was at least several miles away. The loud boom that you sometimes hear is created by the main lightning channel as it reaches the ground.
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How close does lightning have to be to hear it?

Thunder is the sound produced by lightning and generally cannot be heard more than about 15 miles from the nearest point of the lightning bolt, though the upper limit of audibility can, at times, approach 30 miles.
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How close is lightning if it shakes your house?

yourself, but your home is always at risk, even if a strike is a mile away. In fact, Richard Kithil of the National Lightning Safety Institute says indirect lightning strikes are 2000 times more likely to cause "mischief" than a direct strike.
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What happens when you're struck by lighting in a car? | Top Gear



Can lightning penetrate a house?

Since lightning strikes are such a common phenomenon, your house may also be struck by lightning at some point. Lightning forms between a storm cloud and the earth. Since a lightning bolt's objective is to reach the ground, it will pass through your home's structure, electrical wiring, or water pipes.
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Can lightning strike a car?

Myth: Rubber tires on a car protect you from lightning by insulating you from the ground. Fact: Most cars are safe from lightning, but it is the metal roof and metal sides that protect you, NOT the rubber tires.
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How loud is lightning up close?

A clap of thunder typically registers at about 120 dB in close proximity to the ground stroke. This is 10 times louder than a garbage truck or pneumatic jackhammer drill. By comparison, sitting in front of speakers at a rock concert can expose you to a continuous 120+ dB level.
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How far away is lightning if no thunder?

For every 5 seconds the storm is one mile away. Divide the number of seconds you count by 5 to get the number of miles.
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Does lightning make noise?

Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning produces rapid expansion of the air in the path of a lightning bolt.
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Why do I feel weird before a storm?

"It could be that barometric pressure affects the viscosity of the fluid that lines joint sacs, or it could be that it triggers the pain responses in the nerve endings of the joint. Either way, it's what your grandma has been saying for years: Some people feel pain in their joints when a storm is approaching."
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How do you know if you're about to be struck by lightning?

Just before lightning actually strikes, static energy is going to fill the air. If you look at your arms, you may see the hair on your arms standing on end. You may also feel a physical tingling sensation throughout your body, especially in your extremities.
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Will lightning affect mobile phones?

Cell phones (and cordless portable phones) used indoors during electrical storms are perfectly safe because there is no wire through which the electric discharge could travel. (The belief that lightning can follow the radio waves is completely unfounded.)
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What does it feel like to be hit by lightning?

Witnesses say most of the victims were in or near the water at the time of the lightning strike. — -- A South Carolina man who says he's been struck by lightning ten times compares the feeling to being zapped inside a microwave. "When it hits you, it's like being hit by a freight train.
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Does getting hit by lightning hurt?

Though everything might look fine on the outside, the surge may have damaged the software within. Lightning-strike victims struggle to describe the pain and sensations of millions of volts of electricity passing through their bodies. Many simply say that the experience is unthinkable.
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Can you survive a direct lightning strike?

The heat produced when lightning moves over the skin can produce burns, but the current moving through the body is of greatest concern. While the ability to survive any lightning strike is related to immediate medical attention, the amount of current moving through the body is also a factor.
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Can lightning silent?

Silent lightning, otherwise known as heat lightning, is when lightning occurs but is not followed by the expected roll of thunder. When lightning is silent it is likely that it comes from a distant thunderstorm that is too far away for people to hear any noise.
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How fast is a lightning?

The speed of lightning

While the flashes we see as a result of a lightning strike travel at the speed of light (670,000,000 mph) an actual lightning strike travels at a comparatively gentle 270,000 mph.
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Is it safe to pee during a thunderstorm?

A toilet is probably as safe a place as any in a lightning storm, if you're not touching metal. Porcelain is a great insulator. In a lightning storm, don't stand in the shower clutching onto the shower head. Don't sit in a bathtub while in contact with the metal drain cap or faucet.
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What does close lightning sound like?

The air around the lightning bolt expands faster than the speed of sound, which creates a shock wave of thunder. When you're this close to the bolt, though, it sounds more like a bullet from a gun.
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Does lightning create a sonic boom?

Yes! Lightning heats the air and causes shock waves. These in turn cause sonic booms—but you probably know them better as thunder! Lightning and thunder happen at the same time.
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Why is it advised to switch off TV during thunderstorm?

It is advised to switch off TV/radio during thunderstorm because appliances like TV/ radio work with an electromagnetic waves and they can catch electricity as they work as a good conductor and these electricity flows through the wires of these appliances which can shock you, if you touch and they can even catch fire.
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Is a car the safest place to be in a lightning storm?

If you're caught in a storm while driving, you are safest in an enclosed, metal vehicle. (This means hard-topped cars with all of the windows shut.) If your car is struck by lightning, the current will flow through the metal body of the vehicle to the ground.
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What are 5 safety tips for lightning?

Protect Yourself from Lightning Strikes
  1. Immediately get off elevated areas such as hills, mountain ridges, or peaks.
  2. Never lie flat on the ground. ...
  3. Never shelter under an isolated tree.
  4. Never use a cliff or rocky overhang for shelter.
  5. Immediately get out of and away from ponds, lakes, and other bodies of water.
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