Chile volcano lightning picture: Puyehue
Chile volcano picture: Puyehue ash plume
Chile volcano picture: residents resist evacuation
Volcano picture: Puyehue ash in Argentina
Chile volcano lightning picture: Puyehue
Chile volcano lightning picture: Puyehue
Chile volcano lightning picture: Puyehue
Chile volcano picture: ash plume of Puyehue
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Volcanic LightningIn a scene no human could have witnessed, an apocalyptic agglommeration of lightning bolts illuminates an ash cloud above Chile's Puyehue volcano (map) on Sunday. The minutes-long exposure shows individual bolts as if they'd all occurred at the same moment and, due to the Earth's rotation, renders stars (left) as streaks. Lightning to the right of the ash cloud appears to have illuminated nearby clouds—hence the apparent absence of stars on that side of the picture.After an ominous series of earthquakes Saturday morning, the volcano erupted that afternoon, convincing authorities to evacuate some 3,500 area residents. Eruptions over the course of the weekend resulted in heavy ashfalls, including in Argentine towns 60 miles (a hundred kilometers) away.—With reporting by Christine Dell'Amore
Photograph by Francisco Negroni, Agenci Uno/European Pressphoto Agency

Pictures: Chile Volcano Plume Explodes With Lightning

Spewing an apocalyptic, lightning-strewn plume this weekend, Chile's Puyehue volcano burst back to life after a decades-long slumber.

June 06, 2011

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