If you were running errands or went out to grab lunch on Thursday, you may have noticed a few “hole punch” clouds in the San Antonio sky.
This cloud phenomenon is called a “fallstreak” and has to do with the process of freezing already very cold water droplets.
Here’s an explanation of how these fallstreaks are formed:
Believe it or not, there is a space for liquid water droplets to exist in temperatures at or just below 32° without actually freezing into ice crystals. Meteorologists call this supercooled water.
Often when an airplane flies through a cloud deck consisting of supercooled water droplets (the one over the San Antonio area today was situated at about 22,000 feet), the exhaust can introduce condensation nuclei, which are tiny particles that can kick-start the freezing process into ice crystals.
Once the water droplets freeze, they grow and start to fall, forming a hole. That hole then grows as droplets around it start to freeze and fall as well.
Fallstreaks (or hole punch clouds) in the San Antonio sky this lunch hour! #KSATWeather pic.twitter.com/QvPf1AbAOG
— Mia Montgomery (@KSATMia) January 26, 2023
Have a photo or video of these fallstreaks? We’d love to see them! You can upload them to KSAT Connect here, and we may share them on air! You can also check out pictures other viewers have submitted.
- Read more from the meteorologists on the Whatever the Weather page
- Download KSAT's weather app for customized, accurate forecasts in San Antonio, South Texas or wherever you are
- Find the latest forecasts, radar and alerts on the KSAT Weather Authority page