Explaining Rare 'Hole Punch' Cloud With Rainbow in the Middle
Residents of Wonthaggi, near Melbourne, Australia, were taken off guard by the appearance of a hole punch cloud earlier this week.
Residents of Wonthaggi, Australia (map) snapped pictures of a rare, rainbow-filled "hole punch" cloud on Monday. By the next day, the photos had gone viral with speculation about the unusual phenomenon overhead.
Usually, atmospheric water droplets latch on to particles in order to form ice crystals, or snow. This happens on a massive scale during snowstorms. The only way water droplets can spontaneously form ice crystals without those particles is if temperatures fall to roughly -40°F (-40°C). (Learn more about these giant cloud holes.)
In a hole punch cloud, temperatures fall in only a small portion of the cloud, forming a localized snowstorm. When that snow falls, it leaves behind a hole. Refraction of sunlight by the ice crystals results
