It originates from a mass of storm clouds at an altitude of more than 1 km and occurs for 140 to 160 nights a year, nine hours per day, and with lightning flashes from 16 to 40 times per minute. The phenomenon sees the highest density of lightning in the world, at 250 per km². In summers, the phenomenon may even occur as dry lightning without rainfall.

The lightning changes its flash frequency throughout the year, and it is different from year to year. For example, it ceased from January to March 2010, apparently due to drought, leading to speculation that it might have been extinguished permanently.

Catatumbo lightning usually develops between the coordinates 8°30′N 71°0′W and 9°45′N 73°0′W. As the sun goes down, easterly winds begin to pick up speed. The result is the development of a nocturnal low-level jet (NLLJ) similar to what we see in the Great Plains in North America. These winds bring moisture primarily from the Caribbean (some from the lake itself).

This moist air flow hits the high mountain ridges of the Andes, the Perijá Mountains (3,750 m), and Mérida's Cordillera, which enclose the plain from three sides. The air is lifted, and convection (thunderstorms) forms over the mountains.

As the NLLJ continues through the night, more thunderstorms are produced as others dissipate over the same area. This is known as terrain-anchored convection. When the NLLJ weakens in the morning, thunderstorm development will cease. This pattern is repeated every night for much of the year.

The phenomenon is characterized by almost continuous lightning, mostly within the clouds, which is produced in a large vertical development of clouds. The Lake Maracaibo Basin in North Western Venezuela has the highest annual lightning rate of any place in the world. The lightning produces a great quantity of ozone.

According to skybrary.aero