SAN ANTONIO — San Antonians sent pictures and emails to KENS 5 of a rare phenomenon depicting cloud formations known as "hole punch clouds" or fallstreak holes seen Thursday afternoon.
These types of clouds usually show large circular or elliptical formations in what appear to be a cloudy sky filled of mid to high-level clouds. Here skies create an illusion of "holes" left in the middle of a cloud deck with thinner or "falling" clouds that appear as streaks and fan out from the center.
These clouds form when planes pass through clouds filled with "supercooled" water droplets causing them to freeze and fall. This creates a "hole" in the cloud layer that grows outwards with more droplets beginning to freeze and fall around the center.
The National Weather Service said they received reports of "hole punch clouds" from those residing in the San Antonio and Sequin areas.
