The City of Catatumbo Lightning in Venezuelan. Many people get scared by even a single lightning strike. But can you imagine a place where each day, for 9 hours, there are continuous lightning strikes every couple of seconds?
No need to imagine, because such a place does actually exists in Venezuela. It’s seen on the riverside of the Catalumbo River. The phenomenon is so severe that it persists for 150 days a year. As in, you can witness it for almost five months. This phenomenon is known as catacombs Lightning.
The City of Thunderstorms
This area sees 250 lightning flashes per Km2 per year. Translating to 1.6 million lightning bolts each year. Often there’s so much continuous lightning that nights don’t seem like nights, they’re bright as a day.
Why does this happen?
We don’t know the exact Sureshot reason but research papers revealed that one of the reasons could be a large number of oil deposits here. One claimed that the large quantity of uranium here can be another reason. And geographically, the reason is pinned as the area having a hot water lake surrounded by hills on three sides. At night, when the warms water vapor evaporates and collides with cool air, which causes lightning strikes here.
Diamond is hardest substance is it true ?
The indigenous people living here named it “Ploi” meaning Curiosity. They believe it to be a symbol of respecting nature.
- Description of Catatumbo lightning: These bolts of lightning can strike with incredible speed and power, often leaving behind a trail of destruction.
- The historical significance of Catatumbo lightning: Catatumbo lightning is one of the most dangerous forms of lightning, and has been responsible for many deaths and injuries.
- The scientific explanation for Catatumbo lightning: Catatumbo lightning is caused by a storm that is brewing in the lower atmosphere. As the storm draws closer to the ground, the winds pick up dust and other small objects, and these objects can spark when they come into contact with the electric current in the storm.