Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela (Credit: Reddit, Facebook)
\n\nImagine this: An expanse of the sky that entertains the day during hours of light, and spends almost every night of the year lighting up to mimic the day – this is precisely why Lake Maracaibo in Northwestern Venezuela is world famous as the Earth's lightning capital. The 'lake' is essentially a large, brackish bay or tidal estuary connected to the Gulf of Venezuela and is one of the oldest water bodies in South America. Not just this, the basin is Venezuela's primary petroleum producing region though extensive oil extraction has caused major eutrophication (the process by which a body of water becomes overly enriched with dissolved nutrients leading to excessive growth of plants and algae) and pollution issues.
\n\nWhat feels like a curse that has befallen the ravaged body of water, actually has a potent scientific explanation behind it. The consistent streak of lightning through almost 9 hours of the night, is something that strikes Lake Maracaibo about 297 days of the year, though the count can be as less as 140 or as high as 300. This phenomenon itself is called catatumbo lightning.
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Original source: https://www.timesnownews.com/lifestyle
