Lightning is hotter than the surface of the Sun, reaching temperatures of up to about 30,000°C (54,000°F).

A single lightning bolt can carry up to 1 billion volts of electricity. An electric vehicle, by comparison, typically uses about 300 to 800 volts depending on the model.

Lightning strikes the Earth about 8 million times per day. That is roughly 100 lightning strikes every second.

Most lightning occurs inside clouds, not between the cloud and the ground.

The tallest object does not always get struck. Lightning follows the easiest electrical path.

Despite popular belief, lightning can strike the same place multiple times, such as the Empire State Building.

There are different types of lightning, including cloud to ground, cloud to cloud, intra cloud, and ground to cloud.

Spider lightning can travel sideways across the sky.

Ball lightning is a mysterious glowing orb sometimes reported during storms.

Positive lightning is rarer but much more powerful than typical lightning. It makes up about 5 to 10 percent of strikes and originates from the positively charged top of a thunderstorm rather than the base. It is usually a single, highly intense bolt that can carry up to ten times more current and last longer than typical negative strikes.

The flash you see actually happens in microseconds, but your eyes perceive it as lasting longer.

Lightning can strike up to 10 miles away from a storm.

The phrase “bolt from the blue” is real. Lightning can strike from clear skies.

Lightning helps balance Earth’s electrical charge.

Some lightning bolts can be over 100 miles long.

Lightning can create glass when it hits sand. These formations are called fulgurites and form because the heat is intense enough to melt the sand.

Planes are struck by lightning often but are designed to handle it safely.

Lightning can trigger wildfires.

People can survive lightning strikes, even multiple times.

Lightning can strike water and spread electricity across the surface.

Certain volcanoes create their own lightning storms.

Lightning has been observed on other planets such as Jupiter and Saturn.

Thunder is caused by lightning heating the air so rapidly that it expands explosively.

The rumbling sound happens because lightning is long and irregular.

You hear thunder after lightning because sound travels slower than light.

Sound travels about 343 meters per second (1,125 feet per second) in air.

If you count the seconds between lightning and thunder and divide by three, you get the distance in miles.

Thunder can be heard up to 15 miles (24 km) away under ideal conditions.

The loudest thunder can be as loud as a rock concert.

Different types of thunder sounds depend on distance and the shape of the lightning bolt.