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Experts at the Met Service were even said to have been “stunned” by the astonishing shot of a lenticular cloud over the South Island over the weekend.
Posting the photo on Twitter, Geoffrey Beckett said that in “20 years of flying,” this was “the most impressive cloud” he had ever seen.
Beckett also recorded a video from the cockpit.
He said Storyful the plane was at 18,000 feet and was flying south from Christchurch to Invercargill.
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Geoffrey Beckett via Storyful / AP
Geoffrey Beckett was flying from Christchurch to Invercargill when he saw the cloud.
He said the strong winds at that altitude came from “a perfect direction for the formation of this lenticular cloud.”
Beckett said the cloud would have been too dangerous to fly through, so it veered around it, giving it “the perfect picture.”
Beckett also tagged WeatherWatch, who called the image “amazing.”
“Pilot Geoff Beckett says that in 20 years of flying he had never seen a cloud like this. Neither have we in all our years of prediction in New Zealand! “WeatherWatch said on its website.
“Lenticular clouds are clouds that do not move and are formed mainly in the troposphere. A west breeze over the ranges below helped build this.
“They are often comparable in appearance to a lens or saucer and we often see smaller ‘UFO’ type clouds in New Zealand, especially in eastern areas like Otago and Canterbury when the westerly winds are just right.
“Big thanks to Geoff for tagging us in the tweet, what an honor to get such a remarkable photo!”
– Storyful via AP
