Science Behind “UFO Clouds” Spotted in South Africa

Social media was inundated with pictures of “UFO clouds” spotted in Cape Town, South Africa. The images were captured on Sunday. But these clouds are not as scary as they look and have a scientifically-sound explanation. They are called lenticular clouds after their lens-like appearance.

A photo posted by Instagram South Africa (@instagram_sa) on Nov 8, 2015 at 11:56pm PST

Spotted en route to @cityofcapetown #ufoclouds #capetown

A photo posted by @grahamjenneker | Twitter (@grahamjenneker) on Nov 9, 2015 at 7:11am PST

Some crazy awesome lenticular clouds over Cape Town this evening.. ☁☁☁ #capetown #ufoclouds #altocumuluslenticularis

A photo posted by Shelleen Morris (@beanibop) on Nov 8, 2015 at 10:16am PST

Lenticular clouds form as air is forced to rise over a mountain. The moist air cools as it climbs and condenses into a disk shape. These particular clouds formed over Cape Town’s Table Mountain, which reaches 3,500 feet.

#7wondersoftheworld #tablemountain. #CapeTown #ufoclouds

A photo posted by Bethwill Cloete (@bethwillcloete) on Nov 8, 2015 at 10:01am PST

For WeatherNation: Meteorologist, Monica Cryan
(Headline image: Photo by: @mijlof)