Sometimes a cloud suddenly develops a giant, almost perfectly circular hole in the middle of it.

These strange formations are called hole-punch clouds, or fallstreak holes. They can form when supercooled water droplets inside a cloud suddenly freeze and turn into ice crystals, causing surrounding droplets to evaporate and fall away from the cloud layer. Aircraft passing through the cloud can sometimes trigger the process, although natural atmospheric motion can also play a role.

In this episode, we explore how these bizarre holes form, why they can appear so suddenly, and why something that looks almost artificial can actually be a fascinating result of cloud physics.

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