A Chilean volcano erupts into the middle of a lightning storm; serving as a reminder that nature, while beautiful, is out to get us all.
Chile volcano erupts with ash, lava, lightning [National Geographic]
Categories: Apocalypse, Nature
Posted at 1:18 pm on May 8, 2008
6 Comments -
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OH GOD IT’S NICK NOLTE COMING FOR THE HULK. Your alcohol-fueled rage has turned you into a crazy lightning beast… somehow. I’m sure we can all learn something about the alcohol-fueled rage inside each of us. Thanks, Ang Lee.
Comment by V. Blame — May 8, 2008 @ 1:21 pm
You forgot to end that in :colbert:
Comment by Giania — May 8, 2008 @ 1:24 pm
I can say without fear of hyperboly that that is the most awesome picture I have ever seen.
Not only did a volcano erupt in the middle of a lightning storm, a coincidence that pleases me greatly, but someone was there to catch it on film during the moment the lightning struck.
Unless it was one of those long-exposure shots designed to catch lightning? You know the ones. They leave the camera exposed for several minutes with a filter over it. The background slowly filters in through the dark filter, and lightning strikes punch through. So you get an artificially lightning-rich picture.
Comment by WithoutFear — May 8, 2008 @ 6:10 pm
Ia! Ia! It’s a sign!
(And, yes, definitely long-exposure – or at least, hopefully long-exposure).
Comment by woesinger — May 8, 2008 @ 6:18 pm
As a newbie photographer with a DSLR camera, I can say that taking a picture of lightning is a fiendishly difficult experience.
I took my camera, a steady tripod, and an umbrella up to a golf course during a thunderstorm to try to get a picture of one. After three hours I got maybe one picture I’m happy with.
But to get the picture you see above? The photographer either had a bag full of flash cards on hand to take thousands of 10-20 second exposures, or he was graced with the luck of the Elder Gods.
Comment by Chiablo — May 8, 2008 @ 6:53 pm
This is a totally awesome picture but it is not necessarily a lightning storm from weather clouds. Volcanic eruptions such as this, which involve huge clouds of ash, often generate lightning on their own. It’s not well understood but is thought to be generated by charges built up on the airborne volcanic particles.
Comment by Pyracantha — May 9, 2008 @ 1:25 am