A Lithuanian community of weather enthusiasts has shared a spectacular video of an atmospheric phenomenon on Facebook that has garnered a lot of attention in recent days. According to members of the "Weather and Climate in Lithuania" group, it captures a so-called gust front whirlwind, otherwise known as a "gustnado."
According to "Weather and Climate in Lithuania", at first the image may have resembled ordinary dust devils, also known as "dust devils", which more often appear in late spring or early summer, when the soil is dry and atmospheric conditions are favorable for their formation. However, a closer look at the video and radar data revealed that the phenomenon occurred near a rain cloud, and a darker storm cloud was visible in the sky. All this suggests that this is a gustnado.
A gustnado is a short-lived but spectacular atmospheric phenomenon that occurs where warm ambient air meets cold air from a cumulonimbus cloud. This interaction occurs along the advancing gust front of a storm. Although it may look threatening, a gustnado is not a true tornado – but its sudden appearance and bright appearance often lead to it being mistaken for one.
As "Weather and Climate in Lithuania" explains, this is a fairly rare phenomenon in our latitudes.
"Gustnado is often confused with dust storms, but it is easy to identify by nearby rain clouds and a sudden increase in wind. This is a great example of how nature can surprise even experienced observers," comments "Weather and Climate in Lithuania."
This phenomenon is recorded extremely rarely in Lithuania, so the weather amateur community invites everyone to observe the sky and record unusual phenomena.
"If you film something very interesting, then upload it to the Weather Enthusiasts group so that all of Lithuania can see the interesting facts about the atmosphere," the administration of "Weather and Climate in Lithuania" invites.
