Fallstreak Hole Cloud formation spotted in Australian Skies

Fallstreak Hole Cloud: its formation was spotted in the sky over Gippsland in eastern Victoria, Australia

A rare cloud formation scientifically termed as Fallstreak Hole was in news after, it appeared in the sky over Gippsland in eastern Victoria, Australia on 4 November 2014. This formation seemed just like a rainbow-streaked alien spaceship.

How Fallstreak Hole Cloud is formed?
Fallstreak cloud is a circular or elliptical gap in the sky and occurs when the water temperature in the clouds is below freezing but the water does not immediately freeze due to lack of ice nucleation particles. The ice crystals are heavy, so they fall out of the cloud, leaving what looks like a hole in the sky, leaving a large hole in the cloud and the appearance of a rainbow.

Apart from this, researchers have found that aircraft flying through super-cooled clouds can also set off the freezing process. This is because when air flows around the tips of an airplane’s propeller and over its wings, it can cool in a localised area, causing the surrounding water droplets to drop to temperatures as low as -40 degrees and freeze. According to Science Magazine, this phenomena caused due to planes fly is called seeding.

First Fallstreak hole also known as holepunch clouds was recorded during the 1940s.