Ceraunophone

/sɛˈrɔːnəfoʊn/ noun

Definition

A device that detects and amplifies the sound of lightning and thunder, converting electrical discharges into audible signals for study.

Etymology

From Greek 'keraunos' (lightning) + 'phone' (sound), literally 'lightning-sounder,' invented in the early 1900s for meteorological research.

Kelly Says

Scientists used ceraunophones to discover that the sound you hear as thunder is actually the shockwave from lightning heating air to 54,000 degrees—hotter than the sun's surface.

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