What makes heat lightning

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Advertise With Us. VA Job Connections. WHSV Careers. Friendly City Fortune. Pet of the Week. Taste of the Valley. Heat lightning may be one of the most misused weather terms during the summer months, but it is likely not what you think it is.

Many people believe heat lightning is produced by hot and humid conditions, lighting up the night sky without any rain or thunder in the immediate area. The flashes of light you are seeing are indeed lightning, but the lightning is from a distant thunderstorm far enough away where the sound of thunder doesn't travel all the way to where you're observing it from.

You can see lightning from a thunderstorm up to miles away, but unless you're within 10 to 15 miles of the storm, you probably won't hear the thunder. The sound of thunder is refracted through the troposphere, or lowest layer of the atmosphere. Published: May 31, pm Updated: May 31, pm. Related Stories. NOAA predicts another active hurricane season.

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