© National Weather Service/Fairbanks, Alaska
Several lightning strikes were detected near the North Pole on Saturday, something rarely seen in that region of the Arctic Ocean.
The lightning flashes were recorded within 300 miles of the North Pole, at 85 degrees north latitude, between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. AKDT, according to the National Weather Service in Fairbanks, Alaska. That's about 700 miles north of the Lena River Delta in Siberia.
This was a rare event and one of the most northerly lightning strikes in the memories of Alaskan forecasters, the NWS said.
Lightning does occur each summer north of the Arctic Circle (66.6 degrees north latitude), including occasionally over southern portions of the Arctic Ocean.
It's uncertain how many lightning strikes in history have occurred as far north as Saturday's event, but based on the worldwide lightning climatology map shown below,
they are hardly seen in that region of the Arctic.
Comment: CCTV reports that the death toll has risen to 49, with another 21 people reported missing.