When the US Embassy Kuala Lumpur shared a breathtaking image of lightning over Malaysia from the International Space Station, it probably expected admiration for nature’s power.
Instead, Malaysians did what they do best online by turning it into a comedy show.
Shared photo from space station
In a Facebook post dated January 9, the embassy wrote:
“Malaysia, you’ve never looked more electric. Looking back at this iconic 2016 shot from the International Space Station. Those bright pops of white aren’t city lights—they’re massive lightning strikes firing off inside a thunderstorm system.”
The post went on to include a fun trivia fact: lightning can reach roughly 30,000 Kelvins, about five times hotter than the Sun’s surface.
But while the science lesson was impressive, the comment section quickly stole the spotlight.
‘No oil here!’
Some netizens jokingly leaned into outdated stereotypes about Malaysia being underdeveloped.
One commenter wrote that the bright lights were actually bonfires, claiming that Malaysians light fires at night to ward off wild animals while sleeping in trees.
‘As you can see, we live in the jungle. We build fire to warm our bodies.’
However, the most viral comments were aimed at poking fun at America’s perceived interest in oil-rich nations.
‘Please tell your president we don’t have oil ya. We only have Saji cooking oil.’
‘We don’t have cities. We all live in the trees. (Note: we don’t have oil).’
