The famous Catatumbo Lightning takes place over a lake in northwestern Venezuela most nights of the year.

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. For as long as people have traveled through Lake Maracaibo ...

Lightning was likely the first source of fire for prehistoric humans—and it remains, along with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, one of nature’s most amazing displays of power. One place in ...

But as nature constantly proves, that is untrue. And it’s especially untrue in Venezuela, where a particular spot on a particular lake attracts 1.2 million lightning bolts a year. That’s about 28 ...

We love a good lighting storm — but imagine a place where you’ll find an epic, world-record-holding bout of bolts almost every night. An “everlasting storm” known as Relámpago del Catatumbo appears in ...

PUERTO CONCHA, Venezuela—Normally, there is just an hour between the sun going down and the sky lighting up over the Catatumbo Delta. It’s already dusk, and Dylan and I are sitting on a dock in a ...