The wrath of the gods over the Venezuelan lake (10 photos + 1 video)
Nature sometimes shows people special powers - mesmerizing and frightening at the same time. Which, despite the achievements science, it is also difficult to find explanations. 
The element reveals its power in the northwestern part Venezuela, where the Catatumbo River joins Lake Maracaibo. It is called the Catatumbo Lightning. 
About a million lightning bolts a year produce a thundercloud over river. And the power of each of them is about 400 thousand amperes, which is 6 times exceeds the power of ordinary lightning. The spectacle is incredible - bewitching and powerful: discharges cut through the sky, the length of which reaches 10 kilometers and more. Remarkably, the rumbles are almost inaudible. And absence sound gives the natural phenomenon mystical notes. 
Storms are common in this area. But the lightnings give oh know yourself not only during a storm. The element manifests itself in ordinary days, 10 hours in a row. In this connection, the storm even began to be called the Lighthouse Maracaibo and use in navigation. 
Researchers believe that the main cause of storms and lightning is methane, the level of which in the atmosphere of this area very high due to the large number of swamps. River flowing into the lake passes through a huge number of them and washes out organic connections. 
As they decompose, ionized methane is released, which rises to a great height and is carried by the wind. It is he weakens the insulating characteristics of the air in the cloud and provokes permanent lightning. 
Francis Drake
Interestingly, the first mention of an unusual phenomenon belongs to the end of the 16th century. In 1595, Francis Drake planned to capture cities. The assault was to take place at night, so that under the cover of darkness demoralize defenders. But the plans were not destined to come true: powerful lightning lit up the sky, and the soldiers saw the attackers and understood them plan. 
The coat of arms of the state of Zulia, in whose territory the lake is located, depicts lightning. 
Lightning is included in the Guinness Book of Records as a unique meteorological phenomenon: the concentration of atmospheric electrical discharges - 250 lightning per square kilometer per year. After that The municipality of Catatumbo named the area the Lightning Capital of the World.
