If you live in west Wales, you may have been forgiven for thinking there was a potential UFO invasion. Imposing clouds shaped like an extra terrestrial spaceship commonly represented in films and TV shows formed above Llandysul at around midday on Wednesday.
It caused many to stop and look to the skies in bewilderment at the unusual sighting, including Mike Andersen, who took a photograph of what he saw and posted it to X. BBC weather presenter Derek Brockway responded with an explanation for the formation — and it was nothing to do with outer space.
Mr Brockway wrote: «Altocumulus lenticularis clouds are caused by north-easterly winds blowing over the hills and mountains. Because of their lens shape, they can be mistaken for UFOs!» For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter.
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The Met Office says that the lens-shaped orographic wave clouds form when the air is stable and winds blow across hills and mountains from the same or similar direction at different heights through the troposphere. It states on its website: «These strange, unnatural looking clouds sometimes form downwind of hills or mountains. They are quite unusual in the British Isles but do occasionally occur. They look a lot like the traditional shape of flying saucers in science fiction, and real lenticular clouds are believed to be one of the most common explanations for UFO sightings across the world.
«When air blows across a mountain range, in certain circumstances, it can set up a train of large standing waves in the air downstream, rather like ripples forming in a river when water flows over an obstruction. If there is enough moisture in the air, the rising motion of the wave will cause water vapour to condense, forming the unique appearance of lenticular clouds.
«Lenticular clouds are a visible sign of mountain waves in the air. However, these waves can be present beyond the clouds, and may exist even when no clouds are formed. On the ground, they can result in very strong gusty winds in one place, with still air only a few hundred metres away. Pilots of powered aircraft tend to avoid flying near lenticular clouds because of the turbulence that accompany them. Skilled (and brave) glider pilots, on the other hand, like them, because they can tell from the shape of the clouds where the air will be rising.» Join our WhatsApp news community here for the latest breaking news.
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