Yosemite Visitor Captures Rare 'Firefall'
A visitor to Yosemite National Park captured the rare 'firefall' phenomenon at the top of El Capitan, where sunlight creates the illusion of flowing molten lava down the cliff face. This bucket-list sight occurs only under specific conditions and timing.
This natural light show is fleeting, typically occurring for about two weeks in mid-to-late February. For the "firefall" to happen, Horsetail Fall must be flowing, which requires a sufficient snowpack and temperatures warm enough to melt it. The effect is only visible when the sky is clear to the west at sunset, allowing the sun's rays to strike the waterfall at the precise angle needed to create the fiery glow. Even a small amount of cloud cover can prevent the phenomenon from appearing. When conditions are perfect, the spectacle can last for about ten minutes. The current phenomenon is a natural spectacle involving Horsetail Fall on the east side of El Capitan. It shares its name with a historic, man-made "Firefall" that was a popular tourist attraction from 1872 until it was stopped by the National Park Service in 1968 due to environmental concerns. The original event involved pushing glowing embers from a large bonfire off the top of Glacier Point, creating a cascade of fire. The modern, natural version was popularized after photographer Galen Rowell captured the first widely known photograph of it in 1973, five years after the original firefall ended.
