Relampago del Catatumbo is a curious natural phenomenon that occurs in the Maracaibo Lake basin, Edo Zulia, Venezuela and produces the highest average lightning by KM2 in the world, specifically 1,176,000.00 lightning bollas per year. To arrive at these results, the scientists analyzed thousands of data collected by a lightning sensor called Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) that NASA put in the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite, which produced close to 17 years of information on tropical rains
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Origin:
It is not known for sure that this eternal event occurs, among some theories that it is due to the formation of water vapor when it is tempted by abundant rains and is the product of the convergence of hot and cold air from some atmospheric conditions that They lie around Zulia. Another theory is attributed to the large amount of flammable gases that come from the petroleum sources of the Lake Maracaibo basin.
Hundreds of years ago when the Wari Indians first appreciated this phenomenon, they associated the flames of thunder as the concentration of millions of fireflies produced by the deities.
Historians say that El Relampago del Catatumbo alerted the settlers and military in 1595 of an invasion attempt when it illuminated the flotilla of the English corsair Francis Drake who intended to loot the city of Maracaibo, at that time, under Spanish control. A quarter of a century later, during the war for the independence of Venezuela in 1823, the imposing flashes of lightning ignited the sky for hours and betrayed the Spanish army that was trying to sneak towards the shore.
It has not been proven yet but the physicist and British television presenter Brian Cox, says that it is possible. Scientists argue that this phenomenon generates a high amount of ozone resulting in 10% of the layer of our planet.
Winner of the Guinness Prize.
The Guinness Organization delivered on January 28, 2014 the certification that recognizes the Catatumbo Lightning Bolt, because it is the natural phenomenon that concentrates the greatest number of lightning in the world.
The Rays of Catatumbo can be seen 400 kilometers away due to its frequency and intensity, this has earned it the name of Maracaibo Lighthouse, and has been used since the colonial era as a guide for sailors.
The phenomenon occurs between April and November, where for 260 nights, the set of electrical storms adorn the sky of western Venezuela and part of Colombia. From there arises the name of Catatumbo lightning, because from a distance it seems a single storm, even from Cúcuta you can appreciate this show.
