How to Calculate Lightning Strike Distance

Lightning is a natural occurrence that can be extremely dangerous. Knowing how to estimate the distance you are from a thunderstorm is an important skill for staying safe during storm season. Pinpointing the exact location of a storm is a job reserved for meteorologists who use complex radar equipment. However, there is a way to estimate your distance from a lightning strike using only your eyes, ears and some fingers to help with counting.

Things You'll Need

  • Stopwatch
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Instructions

    • 1

      Move to a safe vantage point from the thunderstorm for observation.

    • 2

      Start your stopwatch -- or begin counting to yourself -- as soon as you see a flash of lightning. Stop counting when you hear a clap of thunder after the lightning strike.

    • 3

      Divide the number of seconds you counted between lightning flash and thunder by 5. This is the distance between you and the lightning, measured in miles.