What Causes ‘Thunder’ and How Is It Different From Lightning?

Lightning is like a super-fast flash in the sky, but thunder is what you hear when lightning heats up the air and makes it boom. Think of it like when you blow on a hot soup, the steam makes a sound. Lightning does something similar, but much bigger!

Thunder rolls because the shape of the clouds changes how the sound travels. Sometimes it sounds far away, sometimes close, just like when you whisper or shout.