photo #7835002

Warren Keelan, friend of Gareth McKeen (Cloud Appreciation Society member 63,516), is an ocean photographer. He also became a cloudspotter when he photographed this mighty Cumulonimbus brooding over Wollongong, Australia. Fierce storms like this drag down a lot of cold air with their precipitation, and as this air splays outwards upon reaching the land or ocean below, it can cause various storm cloud features to appear. The cool air burrows beneath any warmer and moister air around, which is less dense, causing it to lift and form cloud. One result of this lifting effect can be to form a cloud feature known as an arcus, which extends like a low lip just ahead of the approaching showers. From Warren’s view, the arcus appears to have passed and would be visible from off to the left of the image. Visible from Warren’s perspective are ragged, broken cloud features that have likely formed on the underside of the arcus. When storm connoisseurs peer into the dark gap between the front lip of the arcus and the storm showers beyond, they often describe the appearance as resembling a ‘whale’s mouth’. The effect can look like the devouring maw of a hungry whale. In this example, the jagged features at the front suggest it must be a whale species with teeth. Even when Warren’s not documenting ocean life, it seems he still manages to spot sea creatures.