Enigma Unveiled : Venezuela's Lake Maracaibo, Lightning Capital of the World

04 Nov, (VNI) In Venezuela's Zulia state, there's a village on stilts. It's lit up by lots of lightning bolts. This happens where the Catatumbo river meets Lake Maracaibo. This lake is known as the lightning capital of the world. It even got a record in the Guinness World Records for having the most lightning strikes—about 233 per square kilometer each year. At night, it can go into the thousands!

For the people who live in this watery place, the lightning helps them find their way. They call it the Catatumbo "lighthouse." It's been guiding them through the dark waters for a very long time. There's no thunder, just a quiet, amazing show in the sky for almost 300 nights every year. It's most dazzling in September.

On clear nights, the lightning makes pretty patterns across the Milky Way. You don't need a telescope to see the constellations. Some bolts are really fast, too quick for us to catch. Others move more slowly or meet in big bursts of light.
But even though this light show is wonderful for people who love looking at the stars, it's not so great for the local folks. They don't have regular electric power here. The few generators they have don't work because there's not enough fuel. This is because Venezuela is going through a tough time with money.
Every now and then, you might see a little light from a small home generator, or a fisherman's flashlight. But mostly, it's very dark.