Catatumbo lightning

Catatumbo Lightning at night

The Catatumbo Lightning (Spanish Relámpago del Catatumboin) is an atmospheric phenomenon in Venezuela. It occurs strictly in an area located over the mouth of the Catatumbo River where it empties into Lake Maracaibo. The frequent, powerful flashes of lightning over this relatively small area are considered by some to be the world's largest single generator of tropospheric ozone. It originates from a mass of storm clouds that form a voltaic arc at more than 5 km of height, during 140 to 160 nights a year, 10 hours per day and up to 280 times per hour. It occurs over and around Lake Maracaibo, typcially over a bog area that forms where the Catatumbo River flows into the Venezuelan lake.

The storms (and associated lightning) are likely the result of the heavy winds blowing away from the Andes Mountains, which then collide with ionised gases - specifically the methane created by the decomposition of organic matter in the marshes. Being lighter than the incoming air, the gas rises up into the cloud layer, creating an electrical charge and a subsequent discharge which is seen as lightning.

The phenomenon is characterized by almost continuous lightning (without the sound of thunder), which is produced in a large vertical development of clouds that form large electric arcs between 2 and 10 km in height (or more). The lightning is seen most often in the afternoons, when evaporation is greatest. The mountains of Perijà (3,750m), and Cordirella de Mérida, themselves a branch of the Venezuelan Andes, serve to enclose and concentrate the now-charged winds from the northeast, thereby producing large vertical clouds, focused around the River Catatumbo.

The phenomenon is easy to see from hundreds of miles away, i.e. from the lake (where no clouds usually occur at night) which is also known as the Lighthouse of Maracaibo, as the boats that sail the area can navigate at night without any problems at the time of sailing. The storms have an annual occurrence of 140 to 160 nights, each lasting up to 10 hours per night and each producing up to 280 strikes per hour. Furthermore, these thunderstorms produce a high percentage of all the ozone production worldwide. The Catatumbo Lightning can be considered a major regenerator of the planet's ozone layer as it produces approximately 1,176,000Kw of atmospheric electricity.

Historically, the first written mention of the Catatumbo lightning was in the epic poem "The Dragontea" of Lope de Vega, published in 1597, in which he narrates the defeat by the English pirate or privateer Sir Francis Drake of the mayor of Nombre de Dios, Diego Suarez de Amaya.

The Prussian naturalist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt once described it as "electrical explosions that are like phosphorescent gleam ...", and was also reviewed by the Italian Geographer, Agustin Codazzi, as "lightning that seems to arise from the continued Zulia river and its surroundings."

Among the major modern studies is that undertaken by Melchor Centeno, who attributes the origin of the thunderstorms to closed wind circulation in the region.

Between 1966 and 1970, the scientist Andrew Zavrostky with assistance from the University of the Andes, made three expeditions which concluded that the area would have several epicentres in the marshes of the Swamp National Park, Juan Manuel de Aguas, Claras Aguas Negras and west Lake Maracaibo, and in 1991 suggested that the phenomenon occurs due to the meeting of cold and warm air currents but did not discard the uranium in the bedrock as a possible agent co-causal, although this last fact is nothing more than pure speculation.

Between 1997 and 2000, Nelson Falcón et al, conducted several expeditions and produced the first model of the microphysics of Catatumbo Lightning, identifying methane as a major cause of the phenomenon, but this is mere speculation, and that methane is not so important here as in other areas such as oil dry or desert areas where there is no such thing. It has been noted to have little effects on local ferns plantlife, despite concerns.

Catatumbo lightning usually develop between the coordinates 8 ° 30 'and 9 º 45' north latitude and 71 º and 73 º W, which implies a very large area, although, of course, this area has always had storm activity. Remote areas of this vast area are occupied by the indigenous group of Motilones, who always stubbornly resisted domination by the Spaniards and the first who attempted to exploit its territory. It was only very recently that they accepted the participation of Spanish Capuchin missionaries (in the second half of the twentieth century), who then founded several towns in the mission of The Tukuko and others. Tukuko was installed in a simple weather station and over several years observed the annual rainfall amount was about 4,000 mm which served to give an example of the rainfall in the area. This in turn explains the large flow of the river Catatumbo that, about 500 km long, is navigable throughout much of its route. The final part of the rivers course delivers a huge amount of sediment into the many bends of Lake Maracaibo, resulting in a delta that has been built in the lake. Indeed, were it not for the lake is an area of subsidence of the land (ie, a sedimentary basin or subsidence) that has long contributed by that river sediments had completely covered the lake.

Lightning Catatumbo is admired by Venezuelan society, particularly in the northwestern state of Zulia, which has a beam in its coat of arms to symbolize the official phenomenon. Also the song of the anthem of the State of Zulia, whose author is the Zulian Udon Perez, includes a stanza that refers to this phenomenon:

"The light with the lightning / tenacious Catatumbo / sets the direction of Nauta / as clear lantern" [1]

Wari ethnicity defines it as "the concentration of millions of cocuy (fireflies) that meet every night in Catatumbo to pay tribute to the parents of creation," while the Wayúu yucpas attribute this to the presence of Guajiros spirits of the fallen to shine as a kind of message, as well as the "eternal glow in the hills."

A Zulian gaita (in addition to many songs and other works) refer to the phenomenon of Catatumbo:

Gaita the world / is a message of love / and lightning Catatumbo / gives birth to its brilliance [2]

Among the main attractions is a historical story about the attempt by Francis Drake in 1595 to sack Maracaibo, which was thwarted by an early warning to the garrison of the city, produced by the illumination of lightning. Moreover, during the war of independence, the lighthouse served as a beacon for the navy of Admiral Padilla, who succeeded in defeating the Spanish ships on July 24, 1823.

Venezuela now seeks to classify the Catatumbo lightning as a world heritage site under the protection of Unesco, and if this is achieved, it would be the first meteorological phenomenon with this documentation.

It was declared a Natural Heritage Site of Zulia on September 27, 2005.