# What would happen if the speed of sound were equal to the speed of light?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 20, 2013, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795 "2013-12-20T03:45:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Baracus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/2bfe46/32.png) [@Baracus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baracus)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2013, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795/21 "2013-12-20T18:12:21Z")

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> [@bup](#):
>
> No Doppler effect.

There would still be a Doppler effect. It would just be a number of magnitudes of order smaller than it is now for a given relative velocity.

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**Author:** ![Artemis\_Tardis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4bbf92/32.png) [@Artemis\_Tardis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Artemis_Tardis)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795/22 "2013-12-20T18:20:09Z")

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> [@TimeWinder](#):
>
> Everything would catch fire because of the friction of air (and everything else capable of transmitting sound) molecules accelerated to light speed. I have to imagine that even if we were _vewy, vewy qwiet_ the planet would vaporize in short order.

Imagine what a fart could do!

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**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2013, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795/23 "2013-12-20T18:50:27Z")

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> [@demian\_travis](#):
>
> I was wondering what would happen if sound could travel at the speed of light.  
> no way to calculate the distance of a storm counting the time between lightning and thunder

Would we have a name for thunder if it was simultaneous with lightning?

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2013, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795/24 "2013-12-20T18:59:47Z")

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> [@harmonicamoon](#):
>
> Would we have a name for thunder if it was simultaneous with lightning?

And more importantly, would it still only happen when it rains[?](http://www.lyricsfreak.com/f/fleetwood+mac/dreams_20054239.html)

😉

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**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2013, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-the-speed-of-sound-were-equal-to-the-speed-of-light/676795/25 "2013-12-20T19:29:07Z")

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> [@Baracus](#):
>
> There would still be a Doppler effect. It would just be a number of magnitudes of order smaller than it is now for a given relative velocity.

Oh, yeah. Red shift and blue shift of light.

Never mind. :o

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