Sunday, November 9, 2014

Strange ‘fallstreak’ Rainbow Cloud Hovers Over Wonthaggi, Australia

The image sent to 3AW Melbourne by listener Carol. Picture: 3AW/Twitter
The image sent to 3AW Melbourne by listener Carol. Picture:

3AW/Twitter Source: Twitter
 
PHOTOS of a bizarre rainbow cloud hovering over Victoria have caused a sensation on social media last night. 

The images appear to show a giant, colourful wormhole in the sky over Wonthaggi.

But experts have revealed there’s a scientific explanation.

The first picture was tweeted by 3AW, after listener Carol sent it to the Melbourne radio station.
That tweet was quickly followed by a flurry of social media posts, in which observers questioned what the strange sight could be.

Theories ranged from aliens to UFOs to the end of the world, with journalist Martin McKenzie-Murray tweeting: “Rapture’s here folks”.

But Michael Efron, forecaster at the Bureau of Meteorology, reassured locals that the sight was a natural weather phenomenon.

Instagram user seventyfour posted this picture with the comment: “Aliens ... obviously.”  “It looks like a fallstreak cloud, also known as a punch hole cloud,” he told Fairfax Media. “They form when the water temperature in the cloud is below freezing, but the water has not yet frozen due to a lack of ice nucleation particles.

“When the water does start to freeze, it falls down to the surface ... so you’re left with this cloud surrounding it, this clear area.”

The iridescence within the cloud works like that seen in sea shells, butterfly wings and soap bubbles, he said.

Clouds need to be high in the sky for them to form.

Mr Efron said the sight was rare, but that a similar cloud formation was spotted over Perth last month.

Instagram user seventyfour posted this picture with the comment: “Aliens ... obviously.” Picture: Seventyfour Source: Instagram

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