A dramatic video showing a "roll cloud" over a beach in Portugal is going viral on social media, leaving netizens mesmerised. According to EuroNews, the incident took place on Monday as the country sweltered under a heat wave. The "roll cloud" hit several beaches along the Portuguese coast. This rare meteorological phenomenon occurs when air masses of contrasting temperatures and sea breezes interact, forming a thick wave of cloud. These clouds are tube-shaped and move horizontally. They resemble a giant wave, but have nothing to do with tsunamis.
A video of this rare phenomenon has surfaced on social media. The clip shows a dense cloud coming out of the ocean and heading towards the beach. As the clouds approach, strong winds appear, taking beachgoers by surprise.
Watch the video below:
Since being shared, the video has gone viral, garnering more than 20,000 views and several likes.
"Holy canoly! Is this the storm front that will give Europeans a respite from the heatwave in a few days?" asked one user. "It's interesting, because they used to be very common here in Northern Portugal back when my parents were kids (60s-70s) and then they disappeared until yesterday," commented another.
"Wow, it's like a wave!" wrote a third user. "So ominous looking!" added another.
A roll cloud is a low, horizontal, tube-shaped, and relatively rare type of arcus cloud. They usually appear to be "rolling" about a horizontal axis. Roll clouds form near the edge of thunderstorms when relatively cool air moves ahead into the warmer and damper air that's feeding the storm.
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According to EuroNews, this rare phenomenon occurred amid a time when mainland Portugal is in the grip of a severe heatwave. On Sunday, the heat produced a wide variety of unstable weather phenomena in the country, such as freak rain showers, violent thunderstorms and hail. These phenomena were reportedly more intense in the interior of the country.
With temperatures rising further into the week, the National Civil Protection Authority has issued a warning to the population with preventative measures and other recommendations. The agency warned that the danger of rural fires is 'Very High' to 'Maximum' in the interior of the North and Centre and in the Algarve.
