Charcoal Mountain Night Glow

Charcoal Mountain Night Glow

Introduction The Charcoal Mountain Night Glow refers to the natural phenomenon of open-air coal spontaneous combustion in Yan Dong Gou, Shang He Yan, in the urban area of Zhongwei. Also known as Little Cave Mountain, Charcoal Mountain is located in Chang Le Town on the southern bank of the Yellow River in Zhongwei. Beneath its ridges lies bituminous coal, which has been burning continuously for years due to factors such as earthquake fissures, small-scale mining, and sun exposure. By day, the mountain is shrouded in smoke, and passersby feel as if they are walking through clouds; by night, however, flames roar fiercely, resembling the lights of countless households. Flickering in the breeze, the fire dies down in one spot only to ignite in another, creating an exceptionally spectacular scene. However, over time, significant geological changes have occurred, and the coal no longer burns spontaneously. While wisps of blue smoke still rise as before, the blazing flames have disappeared.

Since the reform and opening-up, Chang Le Town has made full use of its local resource advantages to vigorously develop township enterprises, establishing coal mines along Little Cave Mountain. To improve economic returns, they also ignited the extracted raw coal to produce coke, resulting in piles of coking coal spread across the mountainside. Once ignited, these piles emit smoke during the day and leap into the sky with flames at night, resembling the lights of a mountain city. Hence, locals call it the “Night Illumination Light.” In this way, the once-vanished scenic wonder of the “Charcoal Mountain Night Glow” in Zhongwei has been revived.

Zhongwei, Ningxia

Chang Le Town: Chang Le Town, the seat of the town government. Covers an area of 918 square kilometers with a population of 21,000. Postal code: . Administers 1 neighborhood committee and 15 village committees: Chang Le Town; Ni Tan Village, Ma Lu Tan Village, Zao Lin Village, Da Lu Jie Village, Liu Ying Village, Gao Tan Village, Li Ying Village, Shui Che Village, Shang You Cun, Huang Tao Village, Chang Le Village, He Yan Village, Shang Shi Peng Village, Xiong Jia Shui Village, Luo Quan Village. …… More detailed information about Chang Le Town ++