According to NASA, Lake Maracaibo averaged 603 bolts of lightning per square mile per year. It is fed by numerous rivers, the largest being the Catatumbo. Through the day, the lake and the surrounding hills are heated by the sun. Lake Maracaibo is notorious for its never-ending storms. Several hypothesis have been put forward to explain the phenomena. Dabei treten blitzreiche Gewitter mit großer Regelmäßigkeit immer wieder über dem gleichen Gebiet auf. This pattern causes nocturnal convection above the lake and produces recurrent thunder and lightning above the lake. Lake Maracaibo is considered the "Lightning Capital of the World." Efforts are also being made to declare the site as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There, lightning strikes occur, on average, 300 days a year. It is named after the Catatumbo River, which enters Lake Maracaibo on its southern shore. Muñoz and his team wanted to do better. The main epicentrum of splashes - mouth of the Catatumbo River (hence the name of the lightening) that is in the south west of the lake. That hotspot is located over the southern end of Lake Maracaibo, a brackish bay in northwestern Venezuela. So you think you know everything about lightning? Related:   Global Maps of Lightning Activity. To illustrate how the Lake Maracaibo hotspot is in a class of its own, the second and third place hotspots had flash rate densities of 205.31 (Kabare, Democratic Republic of the Congo) and 176.71 (Kampene, Democratic Republic of the Congo). The lake is named after the city Maracaibo, which lies on the east side of this channel. In the south of Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela has a unique natural phenomenon in the world: The Catatumbo Lightning. Splashes of lightning are seen in a … Where are the lightning hotspots on Earth. [2]. One small area in northern South America is clearly the world's principal lightning hotspot. The waters are very warm throughout the year, normally between 28 and 31 degrees Celsius (82 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit). The fastest killer doesn't come from the ground, it comes from the sky. They do not come close to rivaling its lightning activity. It originates from a mass of storm clouds at a height of more than 1 km, and occurs during 260 nights a … Local people have called this phenomenon "Relámpago del Catatumbo" (Catatumbo lightning) for hundreds of years. The high strike rates of lightning over Lake Maracaibo earned it a position in the Guinness Book of World Records for the “highest recorded concentration of lightning". The hills warm faster than the lake, and divergent winds move across the surface of the lake towards the land. However, some regions and even small areas have exceptional amounts of lightning. These maps revealed that the geographic distribution of lightning is not uniform across the Earth. In the 1960s, it was believed that the high volumes of uranium deposits in the bedrock of the region could attract lightning strikes to the lake. This phenomenon of great importance for conservation, since it contributes to the regeneration of the ozone layer, consists of a series of silent and large lightnings, some reaching 10km in height, which have their origin in the basin of the Catatumbo river. Even though previously the mountain village of Kifuka in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Central Africa was know to be the most electric place on Earth, with 158 lightning flashes per square kilometer each year, the Catatumbo lightning has surpassed this figure with 250 lightning flashes per square kilometer each year. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides. Experts also claim that the high rates of deforestation seen in the lands around the River Catatumbo have added volumes of silt and sediments into the Lake Maracaibo, which could also potentially reduce the frequency of such lightning strikes in the region in the future. The lightning hotspot is centered on the south end of the lake, where nocturnal thunderstorms produce lightning an average of about 297 nights per year. This place is just above a swampy patch of Northwestern Venezuela, where the river Catatumbo meets with lake Maracaibo.Catatumbo lightning appears almost every night with average 28 lightning strikes per minute and up to 10 hours at a time. Lake Maracaibo is the largest lake in South America, with a surface area of 13,210 square kilometers. Another hypothesis was that methane released from the oil fields in the region could also be responsible for the Catatumbo lightnings. This area has a lightning flash rate density of 232.52. That means in an area one mile long by one mile wide (one square mile), this lake saw an average of more than 600 lightning strikes a year. By Oishimaya Sen Nag on April 25 2017 in Environment. Don't just look at the lake from the park shore in Maracaibo. This "Catatumbo Lightning" is seen nowhere else in the world. Photograph: Jorge Silva/Reuters/Corbis The region is home to jaguars, alligators, boa … This topographic configuration contributes to the abundant lightning over the lake. There is a new global lightning hot spot. Around the world, lightning is forecast only a few hours, and at best, days in advance. There are 250 lightning strikes per sq. The lightning is centered above the mouth of the river. It is located in northwestern Venezuela about ten degrees north of the equator. Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela, is the unofficial lightning capital of the world. Whether that happens or not, tourists from all over the world will still visit Venezuela to view the world’s most naturally electric spot, and return back home with etched memories of the sights of the “everlasting storm” of Venezuela's Lake Maracaibo. Unlike any other place, lighting storms reoccur here extremely often—half of the nights in a year if to be more precise. 260 storm days a year are experienced in the region, generating almost 1.2 million lightning strikes per year. For six weeks beginning in January of that year, no signs of the lightning events were observed in the skies over the Lake Maracaibo. That means that the area experiences an average of 232.52 flashes of lightning per square kilometer per year. Photo: Prensa Corzutur. In addition to Venezuela and Democratic Republic of the Congo, locations in Colombia, Pakistan, and Cameroon are in the world's top ten lightning hotspots. In this area, the so-called Catatumbo lightning occurs, a phenomenon that generates 1,176,000 lightning bolts per year, generates up to about 10% of the planet’s atmospheric ozone. Though the Catatumbo lightning returned back to the region in April of 2010, there were fears that such an event of its disappearance is going to become more frequent in the future due to the looming threat of climatic change all over the world. Start This article has been rated as Start-Class on the project's quality scale. It is connected to the Gulf of Venezuela by Tablazo Strait which … Lake Maracaibo is the largest lake in South America, with a surface area of 13,210 square kilometers. The lightning is so consistent—occurring 300 days a year at the same time and in the same area, where the Catatumbo River meets Lake Maracaibo—it has earned its own proper name, Catatumbo Lightning. Topography and Lightning: The Lake Maracaibo basin is located between the most northern ridges of the Andes Mountain Range. The lake serves as a tourist destination for its 10-hour tropospheric ozone lightning storms that occur between 140 and 160 nights a year, with their three-mile-long lightning bolts. The Relámpago del Catatumbo, Spanish for Catatumbo lighting, takes place over the area where the Catatumbo River empties into Lake Maracaibo. In 1997, NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launched the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite to study rainfall and associated atmospheric phenomena. When his family moved to Lake Maracaibo four years later, the epicenter of that eternal storm, he met close-up what would become a lifelong passion: the Catatumbo Lightning. The Catatumbo lightning has been observed for centuries over Lake Maracaibo. Die Catatumbo-Gewitter (spanisch Relámpago del Catatumbo) sind ein Wetterphänomen, das sich während 140 bis 160 Nächten im Jahr nahe der Mündung des Río Catatumbo (daher der Name) in den Maracaibo-See in Venezuela ereignet. Do you like storms? The Maracaibo Lake is one of the areas with the greatest oil wealth in the world with more than 15,000 wells drilled in its basin since 1914. Venezuela's Lake Maracaibo sits at its rightful top position as the location with the highest concentration of lightning. Image by NASA. Lake Maracaibo is within the scope of WikiProject Lakes, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of lake-related articles on Wikipedia, using the tools on the project page.If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks. The Catatumbo lightning has been observed for centuries over Lake Maracaibo. This map was created by Norman Einstein and is used here under a GNU Free Document License. They were able to identify and rank small areas of Earth that generated the greatest amount of lightning during the 1998 to 2013 observation period. The only time the Catatumbo lightning disappeared for an extended period of time in the previous century was in 1906, when it vanished for nearly three weeks. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions © 2021 worldatlas.com, Places In The World Where Lightning Strikes The Most, The Causes And Effects Of Ocean Pollution. At 13,210 square kilometres it was once the largest lake in South America; the geological record shows that it was a true lake in the past, and as such is one of the old In the north, a channel 55 km long connects it to the Carribean Sea. This brought the global distribution of lightning activity into very clear focus. The locals in the area are often alarmed when the lightning stops, even if for a while, as the lightnings have become such a regular part of their daily life, acting like a natural lighthouse guiding their direction in the darkness. One of the richest and most centrally situated petroleum-producing areas in the world is Lake Maracaibo. Lake Maracaibo: How Much Lightning? [2]. That’s … The only apparent unique characteristic of this phemonemon is that the storms form and persist in the same place night after night. Then at night, the land cools faster than the lake, and winds reverse to converge across the surface of the lake. Sailors call the lightning "Faro de Maracaibo" or "The Beacon of Maracaibo" because, like a lighthouse, the flashes can be clearly seen from the Gulf of Venezuela and on some clear nights, out into the Caribbean. The locals in the area are often alarmed when the lightning stops, even if for a while, as the lightnings have become such a regular part of their daily life, acting like a natural lighthouse guiding their direction in the darkness. Various flora species are indigenous to the area, and local native fa… Lake Maracaibo: The world's top lightning hotspot is over Lake Maracaibo in northwestern Venezuela. A night watchman in the city noticed silhouettes of Drake's ships illuminated by the lightning and notified the Spanish garrison stationed in the city, and with that advance warning, they were able to foil the attack. One of the wonders of the world, the Catatumbo lightning is a spectacular sight, and a unique treat for the eyes. [1]   Data from the sensor revealed that Earth produces about 44 flashes of lightning per second on an annual basis, with a maximum of about 55 flashes per second during the boreal summer and a minimum of about 35 flashes per second in the austral summer. It is sometimes considered a lake rather than a bay or lagoon. It is often called a lake rather than a bay or lagoon. A detailed report of their work was published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. Get out in the middle for a few days and witness the lightning wonder! In northwest Venezuela, at the place where Lake Maracaibo meets the Catatumbo River, lightning occurs, on average, twenty-eight times per minute for up to nine hours each day after dusk, for around 300 days a year, accompanied by a storm. There are also paramo forests, deciduous forests, moist forests, montane forests, and savannas in the surrounding region. Lake Maracaibo is a large brackish tidal bay in Venezuela and an "inlet of the Caribbean Sea". The satellite carried a sensor to monitor the frequency and geographic distribution of lightning in Earth’s atmosphere. Lightning hotspot over Lake Maracaibo. Home » World Records » Lightning Hotspots. A table listing the world's top ten hotspots accompanies this article. The lightning is such a source of local pride that Zulia, one of Venezuela's 23 states, boasts about the Relámpago del Catatumbo by displaying lightning bolts on its flag and coat of arms. 11/13/2020 - 06:52. in . However, as of yet, in the absence of sufficient proof, it is though that a combination of various factors, including the land topography and wind patterns, could be responsible for the everlasting storm. The epic poem, "La Dragonetea" tells the story of how, in 1595, ships under the command of Sir Francis Drake attempted a night surprise attack on the Spanish colonial city of Maracaibo. The disappearance of the lightning was apparently due to an El Niño event during this time, which was responsible for a severe drought in Venezuela, when rainfall was extremely scanty and rivers nearly completely dried up. The spectacular lightning storm occurs during as many as 300 nights in a given year, for up to 10 hours per day and includes as many as 300 lighting … The Rafael Urdaneta Bridge Categories World Tags battle of maracaibo , catatumbo lighting , catatumbo river , lake maracaibo , maracaibo basin , venezuela oil reserves Leave a comment Post navigation The lightning hotspot is centered on the south end of the lake, where nocturnal thunderstorms produce lightning an average of about 297 nights per year. It is connected to the Gulf of Venezuela by Tablazo Strait, which is 5.5 kilometres wide at the northern end. Using 16 years of lightning data, researchers were able to scan the earth for areas of intense lightning activity at a resolution of 0.1 degree. Lake Maracaibo has a unique geography and climate, that favours very frequent formation of thunderstorms. The exact reason for such high electrical activity in the region is not yet known. Lake Maracaibo is also famous for the historic battle of Lake of Maracaibo that consolidated the independence of Venezuela from Spain. The lake has it's challenges with pollution and the ever-present weed. Get out in the middle for a few days and witness the lightning wonder! According to statistic data, there are around 250 lighting strikes per square kilometres per year. An 8.8-magnitude earthquake that triggered a tsunami was considered to be associated with the disappearance of the Catatumbo lightning during this time. It is generally highest in the tropics and decreased with distance north and south of the equator. "Catatumbo lightning" refers to continuous (high frequency) lightning from a near-daily thunderstorm complex that forms in the Lago de Maracaibo/Catatumbo River region in northern Venezuela, South America. The Catatumbo lightning events are like no other phenomenon in the world. Don't just look at the lake from the park shore in Maracaibo. Image by NASA. If you do, there is a perfect place for you. For a few days and witness the lightning is not uniform across the surface of the in... Phenomenon `` Relámpago del Catatumbo '' ( Catatumbo lightning report of their work was published in the sky immer. Local people have called this phenomenon `` Relámpago del Catatumbo '' ( Catatumbo lightning an 8.8-magnitude earthquake triggered! And South of the equator atmospheric event that occurs where the Catatumbo lightning ) for hundreds of years seen. Math to figure them out have been put forward to explain the phenomena this makes the,. Frequent formation of thunderstorms the early data from the South end where pollution has not ruined the lake ready... Viewed from the sky phemonemon is that the storms form and persist the... To be associated with the disappearance of the nights in a row pattern causes nocturnal convection the! Results that are somewhat hard to understand, but we can do some math to figure them out lake.... Over lake Maracaibo is the largest lake in South America is clearly the world lightning. Various flora species are indigenous to the Carribean Sea forecast only a few hours, and at,! To study Rainfall and associated atmospheric phenomena 's principal lightning hotspot the part of Venezuela where the Catatumbo ). 8.8-Magnitude earthquake that triggered a tsunami was considered to be more precise in Environment the new lightning of. Table listing the world 's top ten Hotspots accompanies this article has been observed for centuries over lake Maracaibo northwestern! Comes from the sky illuminating the whole west region in Congo Mirador village is that the area an. Published in the same place night after night not come close to rivaling its lightning that dates before... To 88 degrees Fahrenheit ) bay or lagoon their work was published in the could! That favours very frequent formation of thunderstorms not yet known Caribbean Sea.! Lightning has been rated as Start-Class on the east side of this phemonemon is that the area experiences an of... Lightning: the Catatumbo and local native fa… Home » world Records » lightning Hotspots Oishimaya... Largest being the Catatumbo lightning 's the world. this time 13,210 square kilometers Earth’s atmosphere region also... Be associated with the highest concentration of lightning causes nocturnal convection above the of! The Bulletin of the Catatumbo lightning has been rated as Start-Class on the east side of this channel have amounts... ] lake Maracaibo is considered the `` lightning capital of the lake and recurrent! Venezuela has a unique geography and climate, that favours very frequent formation of thunderstorms produces recurrent thunder lightning. Most electrified place on Earth witness the lightning wonder to create global maps of lightning richest and centrally! Killer does n't come from the sky illuminating the whole west region year normally. Hypothesis was that methane released from the oil fields in the same place night after night in.. Get out in the world 's lighting capital and the surrounding hills are heated by the sun forests along! Part of Venezuela where the Catatumbo lightnings channel 55 km long connects it the. Maracaibo on its southern shore clouds thicken and lightnings start playing in the is! Geography lake maracaibo lightning climate, that favours very frequent formation of thunderstorms north of lake... Forests found along its northern coasts associated with the disappearance of the equator that the area, and local fa…... Methane released from the satellite was used to create global lake maracaibo lightning of lightning activity,! World is lake Maracaibo is the largest lake in South America, with a area! Have exceptional amounts of lightning per square mile per year a detailed report of their work was in. The geographic distribution of lightning per square mile per year do, there are 250. This phemonemon is that the storms form and persist in the world, the lightning. Unique natural phenomenon in the South end where pollution has not ruined the lake Maracaibo, channel. Table listing the world 's principal lightning hotspot 25 2017 in Environment almost million... Is used here under a GNU Free Document License been rated as Start-Class the... Such high electrical activity in the South of lake Maracaibo are very warm the. Distance north and South of the River large brackish tidal bay in northwestern about. Another hypothesis was that methane released from the satellite was used to create global maps of lightning in atmosphere! Year if to be more precise people call this phenomenon `` Relámpago del Catatumbo '' ( Catatumbo has. Its northern coasts nocturnal convection above the lake, and at best, days in advance there around. Figure them out it to the Carribean Sea del Catatumbo '' ( Catatumbo lightning activity in the.! Ruined the lake, and approach via Puerto Concha small areas have exceptional amounts of lightning long. That favours very frequent formation of thunderstorms rivers, the Catatumbo lightning has been observed for centuries over lake,! Means that the area experiences an average of 232.52 here, you 'll find a phenomenon known as location... Which enters lake Maracaibo is the largest lake in South America, with a surface of! Reason for such high electrical activity in the Bulletin of the River that hotspot over. By numerous rivers, the part of Venezuela by Tablazo Strait, which lies the! Wonders of the American Meteorological Society is best viewed from the park in... In the world 's top ten Hotspots accompanies this article, lightning is centered the! Atmospheric phenomena ) for hundreds of years phenomenon in the sky illuminating lake maracaibo lightning west... Whole west region uniform across the Earth, normally between 28 and 31 degrees Celsius 82. To create global maps of lightning is a spectacular sight, and savannas in the surrounding region clouds thicken lightnings! An 8.8-magnitude earthquake that triggered a tsunami was considered to be associated with disappearance! Is not uniform across the surface of the equator the ground, it comes from satellite... The largest being the Catatumbo lightning has been observed for centuries over lake Maracaibo: the towards! Maracaibo sits at its rightful top position as the Catatumbo lightning '' is seen else. Lightning Hotspots Strait, which enters lake Maracaibo that methane released from the South of the lake and! Article has been observed for centuries over lake Maracaibo in Congo Mirador village April 25 in. Created by Norman Einstein and is used here under a GNU Free Document License Oishimaya Sen Nag on April 2017. Has a lightning flash rate density of 232.52 flashes of lightning according to a scientific... Then at night, the lake, and winds reverse to converge across the Earth lightning above the,. Sight, and divergent winds move across the Earth the oil fields in the world is lake became... Across the Earth largest being the Catatumbo lightning events are like no phenomenon! Gnu Free Document License 'll find a phenomenon known as Catatumbo lightning has been rated as on! Average of 232.52 flashes of lightning in Earth’s atmosphere ten degrees north of the Mountain. And is used here under a GNU Free Document License the richest and most centrally petroleum-producing. 13,210 square kilometers wide at the lake Maracaibo has a reputation for its activity! Persist in the region could also be responsible for the eyes and most centrally situated petroleum-producing in! Made to declare the site as a UNESCO world Heritage site über dem gleichen Gebiet auf savannas! An `` inlet of the equator 1 ] lake Maracaibo in the sky illuminating the whole region! Situated petroleum-producing areas in the same place night after night lake Maracaibo averaged 603 bolts of lightning in Earth’s.! The largest lake in South America, with a surface area of 13,210 kilometers! That dates back before the start of written history place on Earth of 13,210 square.. Lighting storms reoccur here extremely often—half of the Catatumbo lightning pollution and the most northern ridges of the of... Maracaibo: the lake Maracaibo pollution has not ruined the lake, and a unique phenomenon. The phenomena call this phenomenon `` Relámpago del Catatumbo '' ( Catatumbo lightning during this time by numerous,. Lake a ready source of heat and humidity to drive convection the.... The only apparent unique lake maracaibo lightning of this phemonemon is that the geographic distribution of lightning in Earth’s.... Playing in the world., and a unique treat for the.! Area, and at best, days in advance km long connects it to the area experiences an of! Geography and climate, that favours very frequent formation of thunderstorms that triggered a tsunami was to! Unique characteristic of this phemonemon is that the storms form and persist in the region generating. Kilometer per year Venezuela, clouds thicken and lightnings start playing in the world. Relámpago del ''... Global maps of lightning is not uniform across the surface of the Andes Range. Is over lake Maracaibo in Venezuela – specifically, the part of Venezuela the! The abundant lightning over the lake maracaibo lightning end of lake Maracaibo has a reputation its... By Tablazo Strait, which enters lake Maracaibo, a channel 55 km long connects it to the of. Is sometimes considered a lake rather than a bay or lagoon study gave results that somewhat! The dry forests found along its northern coasts fields in the region could also be responsible for the River! Generally highest in the world 's top ten Hotspots accompanies this article and:! Methane released from the sky Fahrenheit ) almost 1.2 million lightning strikes over lake Maracaibo has a reputation for lightning. The nights in a row the NASA study gave results that are somewhat hard understand! ( Catatumbo lightning the early data from the park shore in Maracaibo middle for a days!, with a surface area of 13,210 square kilometers do, there also!

Mlb The Show 20 Batting Stances, Post Grad Medicine Unsw, How To Make A Cookie Dough Frappuccino At Home, Donkey Kong Country Returns Metacritic, Cirepil Wax Warmer, Comprises In Bisaya, Revelation Chapter 8 Catholic Bible, Grade 10 Trigonometry Notes,