© Stan Russell
The freaky, fast-moving cloud formation packed powerful wind gusts.
KSBW Facebook fan Ingrid Schmidt-Wagnaar said, "All of a sudden the trees were bending. Waves of the fog (were) wafting through the garden and it got a bit chilly, whereas it was a balmy 85 degree just moments ago. It was over in less than 3 minutes, and blue sky was again upon us, and it got warm again. Nature's phenomenon."
Santa Cruz resident Ian Babcock was the first to describe it as a "fognado."
Comment:
Monsoon moisture caused the Central Coast's weather to be uniquely muggy over the past two days.
KSBW meteorologist Lee Solomon said "fognado" was likely either a gravity wave, a sea breeze front, or a roll cloud.
"It could be related to gravity waves that were propagating north from southern California, or some sort of a roll cloud or sea breeze front. Either way, very interesting," Solomon said.
The National Weather Service wrote, "In additional to low clouds (stratus) over the coastal waters, note the widespread lumpy mid and high level clouds (convective clouds). Gravity waves (are) propagating northward through the stratus clouds. These gravity waves form when descending air from high-based showers/thunderstorms intersect the stable boundary layer (marine layer). The process can be likened to dropping a stone in a pond."
Perfectly normal occurance. Amazing what the MSM will try to co-opt to sustain their claims.