After doing some research, there is no possible way to hear thunder without lightning being present, somewhere. While the lightning could indeed be pretty far away and not visible, it is still there. The sound of thunder is not possible without lightning occurring first! So don't let anyone try to fool you about that.
Did you know you can actually calculate how far away the lightning is from where you are? There is a pretty simple calculation to do next time you see lightning. Start by realizing the distance traveled by light is relatively instantaneous so you can leave that out of your equation.
340 m/s x Time in seconds between hearing thunder and seeing lightning = How many meters away the lightning is
For the Americans who don't like to use the metric system:
If you want the distance in miles then divide your answer by 1609
If you want the distance in feet then multiply your answer by 3.28
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