Is it a sign of the impending apocalypse? Is it a portal to another universe? Is it an anomaly in the space-time continuum? Is this what the ancient Egyptians warned us about?
Um, no. At least according to Australian meteorologists, who say that this rare cloud formation spotted in the country is a perfectly naturaly, if seldom-occurring phenomenon.
Well, they would say that, wouldn't they?
The formation, called a fallstreak hole, was caught on a smartphone camera by Leesa Willmott over Wonthaggi, near Melbourne.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Adam Conroy said fallstreak holes are gaps that appear in high clouds when a section of the cloud freezes.
The ice crystals are heavy so they fall out of the cloud, leaving a hole.
Frankly, we prefer our explanation.