Whirlpool over Somerset West

I may be wrong but is this really a Cloudpool?

Whatever it is Tojan who has just shown me this picture, says in all his years as a commercial airline pilot
he has never seen anything like this.

The picture was taken by Brent Van Zyl, another airline pilot, my thanks to Brent for the use of his picture.

Click on the picture for a larger image.

The date was September 08 2013 and the place was over Somerset West just outside Cape Town, South Africa.

I think its spinning anti clockwise, the same as water will spin when it goes down the plug hole in a sink, thats a Southern Hemisphere thing, up North it will spin clockwise.

Wow!

Roy

An idea from a novice weather man, anyone have the nerve to say he is wrong?

Hi Roy,

 

Interesting photo. I will give my take on it, as a meteorological non-expert (self-opinionated dunce).

 

That is not caused by a low pressure system, as happens with an hurricane or tornado. In those cases the air movement is upward at the centre. If you look carefully at the perimeter of the hole, the edge of the cloud is wrapping from the left down under the edge on the right. Maybe this downward slope is caused by the slope of the foothills below. Also, low pressure systems rotate clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere and anti-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere. That is rotating in the direction of a high pressure system. But if it were a high pressure rotation then the movement would be outward not inward.

 

I think that is caused by a combination of a convergence layer that is blocking air movement upward and the general air mass movement north-to-south along the Hottentots Holland range. The plains downwind of the Helderberg have set up the anti-clockwise rotation in the form of an eddy just as you would have with a current passing the mouth of a bay setting up a rotational current inside the bay.

 

Regards,

 

DD

(Dudley Dix)

Then Angelo Lavranos sent a comment.

Hi Dudley, Roy,

 

Hello after all this time, Dudley !   I hope life in the US of A is treating you well .

 Just to say I agree with your suggestion, an inversion layer “trapping” the cloudy layer, and that the topographical geometry along with the prevailing direction of the airflow have combined to form that terrific looking vortex.

 

Cheers,
Angelo