In Venezuela, where the Catatumbo River meets Lake
Maracaibo, there is a perpetual lightning storm. Anywhere from 140 to 160 nights
out of the year, for up to 10 hours at a time, the sky over the river is
covered by a lightning storm. It is known to produce up to 280 lightning
strikes per hour and is nearly soundless.
Called the “Relampago del Catatumbo” (which literally means “The
lightning of the Catatumbo”) it was first referenced in 1597 in a poem by Lope
de Vega. The poem talks about Francis Drake’s attempt to take the city of
Maracaibo in the middle of the night in 1595, only to have his position given
away to the city’s defenders by the constant lightning.
The lightning is so regular that it is often used as a
navigation aid to many ships and is known among sailors as the “Maracaibo
Beacon”. Although there has been many theories for the lightning in the past,
scientists are now able to attribute the lightning to a regular, low lying air
current that comes from the Caribbean.
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