A way to tell how far off a lightning storm is from my house?

Question

Is it true you can determine in miles how far off a storm is by counting the seconds that pass between the flash of lightning and the sound of thunder? And if so, is there a name for this process (scientific)?

Answer 1

yeah

when u see the light u count how many seconds until it thunders, then however many seconds it is itll be that many miles

lets say its 3 seconds from light to sound so that means roughly 3 miles.

Answer 2

I don't know of any scientific name for it, but yes you can tell how far the lightning is from your house, simply by counting 1001, 1002, 1003, 1004 and when you hear thunder, stop counting, ever second that passes is 1/5 mile every five seconds is one mile.

Answer 3

yes, it's true that you can calculate the distance between your house and a lightning storm by counting the seconds - about 4.5 to 5 seconds per mile. This is because light travels about 1000 times quicker than sound, and sound travels about 300 metres (1000 ft) per second.

I'm not sure whether there is an actual name for it, but that's the reason for it anyway.