A steam devil was seen churning over Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vermont, on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023.
A steam devil was seen churning over Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vermont, on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023.
Record-low temperatures chilled New England on Friday, leading to a cold-weather phenomenon that's rarely seen in the United States.


Comment: Er, how about never-before-seen?! At least, not in the modern era...


A handful of folks in Burlington, Vermont, caught sight of a funnel over Lake Champlain Friday afternoon, but this was no waterspout. The funnel instead drew in steam fog, also referred to as sea fog, creating what is referred to as a "steam devil."


Comment: Oh 'tis referred to as that, eh? Or did y'all just make that up on the spot?!



These foggy funnels occur during periods of cold weather much like the Arctic blast that New England recently experienced as temperatures in the region dropped below zero and hit record-breaking levels. In Burlington, where the lake is located, temperatures dropped as low as 14 degrees below zero on Friday, followed by a temperature reading of 15 degrees below zero by early Saturday.

"The combination of record cold air crossing the warmer lake was responsible for the phenomenon," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tom Kines said. "Not only did we have the record cold air, but because January was very mild, there were still large parts of the lake that were 'open,' or not covered with ice. In a typical winter, the lake would have had much more ice on it and that would have greatly reduced the odds of the steam devils occurring."

Source: Accuweather