Hard to tell in the various shots how much eruption has already taken place, but at least some of the lightning might be generated by the volcano itself. Static electricity from the erupting particles causes lightning, which is known as volcanic lightning or a dirty thunderstorm.
The volcano is very likely causing the thunderstorm. Thunderstorms develop when convective activity pushes hot, moist air to high altitude. The high heat from the volcano very likely induces the convective flow necessary to generate the storm.
Not that I know of, but we do have another volcano named Agua :) Really though, Guate has plenty of unique and wonderfully cultured names - some are just a wee bit simpler than others.
Ancient times? If I had stepped out and seen that this morning shit would be shat.
I mean, someone has to be the first person to watch the beginning of the end of the world, right? My lizard brain would have instantly decided I was the lucky person.
Me too, but mainly because there's no active volcanoes near me
We did have a massive dry-season lighting storm out of nowhere once which sparked a wall of fire surrounding my city, burning over 8000 square km and blotting out the sun.
In 2020.
Definitely felt like the end of the world.
Also set up one of the greatest reddit exchanges I've ever seen
Commenter 1: these fires were sparked by 10,000 lightning strikes over the course of a day during hot, dry weather
Commenter 2: PG&E [our electric utility, known for both high prices and sparking wildfires] execs breathing a sigh of relief for this one
Commenter 3: I dunno, pretty suspicious. Has anyone ever seen PG&E execs and 10,000 lightning strikes in the same room?