Off The Cuff

What are shelf clouds and why are they in vogue? Explained

July 11, 2023
Bharat Times

Shelf clouds are a unique weather phenomenon. (representative picture)

It is raining heavily across North India, with regional weather offices issuing alerts warning of more rain. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the intense spell of rain over the region including Delhi is due to the interaction of western disturbance and monsoon winds. Uttarakhand is the worst affected as the IMD has issued a red alert, warning that the hill state will receive excessive rainfall. And now, a video claiming to show shelf cloud over Haridwar in Uttarakhand has surfaced on social media.

Badal’s intimidating look in the video is going viral on social media. At times when it rains heavily in an area, videos regularly appear on social media claiming to show excessive rainfall. But there is no way to verify the video.

NDTV cannot verify the authenticity of the video. It appears to have been first posted on July 9 by a user named Anindya Singh, who said the clip was shared by a friend of his.

However, the spectacular cloud formation has attracted the interest of social media users who want to know more about the unique cloud formation.

What are shelf clouds?

according to the US government National Weather Service (NWS) According to the US government, shelf clouds – also known as arcus clouds – are often associated with powerful storm systems, and are sometimes reported as wall clouds, funnel clouds or rotations.

These clouds are sometimes seen beneath cumulonimbus clouds, dense, high vertical clouds that cause intense rainfall.

How are shelf clouds formed?

According to UK Met OfficeWhen a cold downdraft from a cumulonimbus cloud reaches the ground, cold air can rapidly spread over the ground, pushing the existing warm moist air upward. As this air rises, the water vapor condenses into the pattern associated with shelf clouds.

The agency further said that if the new cloud experiences different wind directions above and below it may roll over.

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