Imagine a place where lightning lights up the sky almost every night. This magical spot is a bay surrounded by mountains in a tropical area, and it’s been home to a legendary lightning storm for over 500 years. Hi, I’m Esther, and welcome to MinuteEarth! Even though people often talk about this storm as if it’s just one big event, it’s actually a place where lightning happens a lot. During the day, the sky is usually clear, but when night falls, a new lightning storm begins in almost the same spot.
This isn’t the only place famous for lightning. For example, Florida is known as the lightning capital of the United States. It has a spot that gets 79 lightning flashes per square kilometer each year. Imagine a square that’s one kilometer on each side; it gets struck by lightning 79 times a year! In a larger area of 125 square kilometers, that’s nearly 10,000 lightning strikes annually. While that’s a lot, it doesn’t even make the top ten lightning hotspots in North America. In Africa, the top ten hotspots have between 112 and 205 flashes per square kilometer each year!
Lightning-prone areas are usually in tropical regions, near mountains, along coasts, or close to large bodies of water like lakes and bays. Several factors make these places perfect for lightning storms. First, you need a lot of water. Then, you need heat to turn that water into vapor, and the tropics are warm all year long. This warm water vapor rises and forms storm clouds, especially when there’s cooler air to replace it. Coastlines and large lakes are great for this because during the day, the land heats up faster than the water, causing the air above the land to rise and create a breeze from the water. At night, the land cools faster than the water, creating a breeze from the land, which helps form clouds continuously.
Mountains also help by pushing moist air upward to create clouds. When you have all these features in one place, you get the world’s lightning capital: Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela, with 232 lightning strikes per square kilometer each year. Lake Maracaibo is actually a coastal lagoon with lots of water, located in the warm tropics, connected to the Caribbean Sea, and surrounded by the Andes mountains.
At night, the mountains cool down quickly, but the lagoon’s water stays warmer. This difference creates breezes that meet over the warm water, causing strong updrafts and storm clouds—perfect conditions for lightning. That’s why Lake Maracaibo has one of the most amazing lightning shows on Earth, night after night.
Hi, this is Ever! I first discovered Esther through her awesome science TikToks. When I saw her interest in Catatumbo lightning, I knew it was a great topic for MinuteEarth’s visual style. We collaborated, and the result is the video you just watched. If you want to learn more about Catatumbo lightning, Esther has a longer video that goes deeper into the topic. I’ll link to that and other places where you can find her work in the description. Thanks!
Research different lightning hotspots around the world and create a map highlighting these areas. Use colors to indicate the frequency of lightning strikes. Present your map to the class and explain why these areas experience more lightning.
Conduct a simple experiment to understand how warm air rises. Fill a plastic bottle with hot water and place a balloon over the opening. Observe what happens to the balloon and discuss how this relates to the formation of storm clouds in lightning-prone areas.
Create a safety poster that explains what to do during a lightning storm. Include tips on how to stay safe indoors and outdoors. Share your poster with the class and discuss the importance of lightning safety.
Prepare a list of questions and conduct a virtual interview with a meteorologist about lightning storms. Ask about the science behind lightning and how meteorologists predict storms. Share your findings with the class.
Write a poem about the never-ending lightning storm at Lake Maracaibo. Use descriptive language to capture the beauty and power of the storm. Share your poem with the class and discuss how it reflects the concepts learned.
This tropical, coastal, mountain-encircled bay is home to a legendary lightning storm that has been occurring for over 500 years. Hi, I’m Esther and this is MinuteEarth. Although this legendary storm is often referred to as a single entity, it’s actually a lightning hotspot. During the daytime, the skies are clear; however, almost every night, a new lightning storm forms in essentially the same location.
This isn’t the only place in the world known for its intense lightning storms. For example, Florida, often referred to as the lightning capital of the US, has a hotspot that experiences 79 flashes per square kilometer per year. This means that in a one-kilometer by one-kilometer area, there are 79 flashes of lightning annually. For these 125 square kilometers, that’s almost 10,000 lightning strikes every year. While this is a significant amount of lightning, it doesn’t make the top ten lightning hotspots in North America and is modest compared to Africa’s top ten hotspots, which range from 112 to 205 flashes per square kilometer per year.
These lightning-prone areas are typically located in tropical regions, near mountains, along coastal areas, or near large bodies of water, such as lakes and bays. This is due to several factors that increase the likelihood of lightning storms. First, a substantial amount of water is needed. Then, heat is required to evaporate that water, and the tropics provide consistent warm temperatures year-round. The warm water vapor needs to rise and form storm clouds, which usually occurs when there’s colder air around to replace the rising moist air. This is why coastlines and large lakes are excellent for cloud formation: during the day, the land heats up faster than the water, causing the air above land to rise and generate an onshore breeze; at night, the land cools off faster than the water, creating an offshore breeze, allowing clouds to be continuously fed.
Mountains also play a significant role in forcing moist air upward to generate clouds. Each of these features increases the likelihood of lightning storms; but when you combine all of them in the same location, you get the lightning capital of the world: Venezuela’s Lake Maracaibo, with 232 lightning strikes per square kilometer per year. Lake Maracaibo, technically a coastal lagoon, provides vast amounts of water, is situated in the warm tropics, is directly connected to the Caribbean Sea, and is encircled by the Andes mountains.
As these mountains cool quickly during the night, the water of the lagoon remains comparatively warmer. The resulting offshore breezes converge over this warm water, generating powerful updrafts and storm clouds – the ideal conditions for lightning strikes. This is why, night after night, Lake Maracaibo is illuminated with one of the most spectacular lightning displays on Earth.
Hi, this is Ever! I first learned about Esther from her amazing science TikToks. When I saw that she was interested in Catatumbo lightning, I thought it was the perfect subject for MinuteEarth’s visual style. So we got in touch, and the result is the video you just watched. If you want to learn even more about Catatumbo lightning, Esther has a longer video that dives deeper into the topic. I’ll link to that and other places where you can find her work in the description. Thanks!
Lightning – A natural electrical discharge of very short duration and high voltage between a cloud and the ground or within a cloud, accompanied by a bright flash and typically also thunder. – During the storm, we saw several flashes of lightning illuminating the night sky.
Storm – A violent disturbance of the atmosphere with strong winds and usually rain, thunder, lightning, or snow. – The storm caused the river to overflow, flooding the nearby fields.
Tropical – Relating to or situated in the region of the Earth surrounding the equator, characterized by a hot and humid climate. – The tropical rainforest is home to a diverse range of plant and animal species.
Mountains – Large natural elevations of the Earth’s surface rising abruptly from the surrounding level; a large steep hill. – The Andes mountains in South America are among the longest mountain ranges in the world.
Water – A transparent, odorless, tasteless liquid that forms the seas, lakes, rivers, and rain and is the basis of the fluids of living organisms. – Water is essential for all known forms of life on Earth.
Vapor – A substance diffused or suspended in the air, especially one normally liquid or solid. – When water is heated, it turns into vapor and rises into the atmosphere.
Clouds – Visible masses of condensed water vapor floating in the atmosphere, typically high above the ground. – The sky was filled with fluffy white clouds that signaled fair weather.
Coastlines – The outlines or shapes of the coast, especially with regard to its appearance and features. – The rugged coastlines of Norway are famous for their dramatic cliffs and fjords.
Venezuela – A country on the northern coast of South America, known for its diverse natural attractions, including the Andes mountains and the Amazon rainforest. – Venezuela is home to Angel Falls, the world’s highest uninterrupted waterfall.
Maracaibo – A large city in northwestern Venezuela, situated on the western shore of Lake Maracaibo. – Maracaibo is known for its oil industry and the nearby natural phenomenon of Catatumbo lightning.
