Lightning

[Grumble]

Currently having a thunderstorm chez nous. Rain seems to get much stronger in the immediate aftermath of a peal of thunder. Does the shockwave cause more precipitation?

[philip]

I'm dubious. How soon is immediate? Rain drops don't fall that fast, it probably takes a few minutes for them to fall from the clouds to the ground. If you notice an increase in rainfall at ground level, the increase at cloud level happened a few minutes earlier.

[Woodchopper]

I done a Google and someone else asked the same question:

Dear Tom,
Is it my imagination or does it rain harder after a loud clap of thunder?
— Tony Godek
Dear Tony,

It's probably not your imagination, but it's not the thunder that causes the increase in rainfall intensity. It's the lightning that produced the thunder. It has been shown that, in some cases, a "rain gush" occurs in the seconds following a flash of lightning. In the region of the cloud where the flash occurs, radar measurements have indicated a rapid increase of echo intensity followed by a gush of rain at the ground. The increases in radar reflectivity in small volumes of the cloud following a lightning flash suggest that the electric discharge is influencing the size of particles in the cloud. Within about 30 seconds after a lightning discharge, the mass of some droplets may increase as much as 100-fold as a result of the electrostatic precipitation effect.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/weather/ ... olumn.html

[lpm]

But that's not in the "immediate aftermath" of thunder?

And if it's in the cloud that did the lightning, not the cloud over Grumble, then it doesn't apply?

[lpm]

How were you perceiving strength of rain, Grumble? Visually, eg rain drops hitting a puddle? Or by sound, eg the drumming on the roof?

[Woodchopper]

But that's not in the "immediate aftermath" of thunder?

And if it's in the cloud that did the lightning, not the cloud over Grumble, then it doesn't apply?

I guess it'll depend upon how far away the lightning is.

[shpalman]

What about that thing which happens in movie and on tv where it suddenly starts raining after a clap of thunder.

[Martin Y]

What about that thing which happens in movie and on tv where it suddenly starts raining after a clap of thunder.

I so want there to be a film with a scene of a 2 way conversation, where all the shots of one character were in the dry and all the reverse angles were in the pissing rain. So at the end of each dry shot there's a rumble of thunder just before the cut and at the end of each rainy shot there's a quick clip of the sun emerging from behind a cloud and birds chirping. Repeat multiple times.

[geejaytee]

What about that thing which happens in movie and on tv where it suddenly starts raining after a clap of thunder.

I so want there to be a film with a scene of a 2 way conversation, where all the shots of one character were in the dry and all the reverse angles were in the pissing rain. So at the end of each dry shot there's a rumble of thunder just before the cut and at the end of each rainy shot there's a quick clip of the sun emerging from behind a cloud and birds chirping. Repeat multiple times.

It happens often enough that there's a sufficiently localised downpour (it always rains heavily on tv*) around the actors, but bright sunshine in the background.

*a-ha consider rewrite

[Grumble]

How were you perceiving strength of rain, Grumble? Visually, eg rain drops hitting a puddle? Or by sound, eg the drumming on the roof?

Rain hitting my window, and the lighting was over a mile away most often. Maybe that’s still local enough for the electrostatic effect?

[monkey]

What about that thing which happens in movie and on tv where it suddenly starts raining after a clap of thunder.

That happened to me once. I even said "that was just like the films" when it happened.

We get lots of thunderstorms at the right times of year (not so much this year though) and the rain can start suddenly. Sometimes you can see a wall of rain comming down the road towards you.

The films always miss is the wind getting windier just before the storm starts.

[Martin Y]

I suppose when there's a big deluge the rain is falling thousands of feet and probably takes quite a while to get to ground level. The movement of air that involves might well be the trigger for the lightning and thunder rather than vice versa.

(ETA) as philip basically said yesterday.

[EACLucifer]

What about that thing which happens in movie and on tv where it suddenly starts raining after a clap of thunder.

Happened during a match at Headingley a decade or so back, think it was against South Africa, but honestly can't remember definitely. Was quite memorable, and suffice to say they did not resume play that day.

[shpalman]

Right now I can hear thunder which lightningmaps suggests is coming from about 10-15 km away,* but there's still a bit of late evening sun here.

* - the main nucleus of the storm is further way but there are a few strikes close enough to see and/or hear.

I know that at night I can see lightning all the way over in Bergamo.

(Now there's a hint of a bit of rainbow over there and a few drops of rain on the balcony.)

[basementer]

I suppose when there's a big deluge the rain is falling thousands of feet and probably takes quite a while to get to ground level. The movement of air that involves might well be the trigger for the lightning and thunder rather than vice versa.

(ETA) as philip basically said yesterday.

To put some numbers to it: I found one estimate of about five minutes for raindrops to reach ground from clouds at 10,000 feet, and another source saying they travel at 15 to 25 mph which would be 5 to 8 minutes from that height.
I think, Grumble, that what you describe is a coincidence, though a striking one.

[Bird on a Fire]

I was wondering if a salient stimulus like a thunderclap might increase hearing sensitivity temporarily.

[Grumble]

I suppose when there's a big deluge the rain is falling thousands of feet and probably takes quite a while to get to ground level. The movement of air that involves might well be the trigger for the lightning and thunder rather than vice versa.

(ETA) as philip basically said yesterday.

To put some numbers to it: I found one estimate of about five minutes for raindrops to reach ground from clouds at 10,000 feet, and another source saying they travel at 15 to 25 mph which would be 5 to 8 minutes from that height.
I think, Grumble, that what you describe is a coincidence, though a striking one.

It depends what height the clouds are at though, surely? I noticed it several times, a temporary increase in rain intensity following the thunderclap.

[Gfamily]

If a thunderclap is associated with a gust of wind or a downdraft, that would produce an increase of the speed of the impacting rain as long as the gust or downdraft continued.

[lpm]

How much energy does the sound wave have? Obviously it pushes your ear drum a bit. Can it also push extra rain drops against a window?

[jimbob]

How much energy does the sound wave have? Obviously it pushes your ear drum a bit. Can it also push extra rain drops against a window?

I would think not the thunderclap, but the initial rush of hot, low density air that causes the noise.

[tom p]

What about that thing which happens in movie and on tv where it suddenly starts raining after a clap of thunder.

I so want there to be a film with a scene of a 2 way conversation, where all the shots of one character were in the dry and all the reverse angles were in the pissing rain. So at the end of each dry shot there's a rumble of thunder just before the cut and at the end of each rainy shot there's a quick clip of the sun emerging from behind a cloud and birds chirping. Repeat multiple times.

I was once sat in the car with my dad at some traffic lights. Rain fell and it was absolutely pissing down on the front half of the car - windscreen wipers on full couldn't clear it - but at the back there was no rain at all. The rear windscreen remained as dry as a bone until we moved off.