TERMIUM Plus®

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THUNDER CLAP [1 record]

Record 1 2011-08-19

English

Subject field(s)
  • Atmospheric, Climatic and Meteorological Phenomena
CONT

By definition, thunder is the loud noise that occurs when atmospheric gases are suddenly heated by a discharge of lightning. Thunder [or thunderclap] is also the huge crash that gets the adrenaline running through the veins, especially when it follows a lightning strike too close for comfort!

CONT

Because light travels at a faster speed than sound, you can see a lightning bolt before the sound of thunder reaches you. To judge how close lightning is, count the seconds between the flash and the thunder clap. Each second represents about 300 metres. If you can count less than 30 seconds between the lightning strike and the thunder, this means that the storm is less than 10 km away and there is an 80% chance the next strike will happen within that 10 km.

CONT

To obtain the distance in miles of a lightning bolt, count the number of seconds between flash and thunder, then divide by five.

Key term(s)
  • thunder-clap

French

Domaine(s)
  • Phénomènes météorologiques, climatiques et atmosphériques
CONT

Certaines parties du nuage deviennent chargées d'électricité positive et d'autres, d'électricité négative. Quand la charge accumulée devient trop grande, une décharge se produit : c'est l'éclair. Sur son passage, le courant électrique chauffe l'air à plus de 30 000 degrés Celsius, 5 fois la température de la surface du soleil. Ce courant entraîne un tel échauffement que l'air est brûlé presque instantanément. Une expansion explosive de l'air se produit. Le bruit est très intense : c'est le coup de tonnerre.

CONT

Le tonnerre peut résonner d'un craquement sec lorsque l'éclair est proche ou gronder au loin [...] Si vous comptez moins de 30 secondes entre les éclairs et le tonnerre, l'orage est alors à moins de 10 km et il y a 80% de chances pour que le prochain coup de laudre survienne à moins de 10 km.

Spanish

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