Photos of a bizarre cloud above the US Capitol went viral on Tuesday afternoon.

After closer observation of te cloud weather experts were able to confirm that the cloud was a funnel cloud.

According to the National Weather Service, a funnel cloud is “a condensation funnel extending from the base of a towering cumulus associated with a rotating column of air that is not in contact with the ground are of the start of tornados.”

Photos of the ckoud’s apeareance above the Capitol went viral and made many users wonder why the cloud is appearing above the Capitol just one day before Congress is set to have a UAP.

Per NBC Washington 4 News:

A funnel cloud appeared over the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., as severe weather made its way through the city Tuesday afternoon.

Peter Kiley captured the photo outside the Capitol.

Although the image may be startling, Storm Team4’s Amelia Draper says the funnel is not a tornado and didn’t touch the ground.

The National Weather Service says a funnel cloud is a condensation funnel extending from the base of a towering cumulus associated with a rotating column of air that is not in contact with the ground.

The funnel cloud could also be seen over Ronald Reagan National Airport.

Here’s another angle of the funnel cloud in Arlington:

Per ABC:

Observant visitors to the area around the U.S. Capitol building on Tuesday afternoon were treated to a unusual sight: the unmistakable shape of a funnel cloud extending diagonally from the sky and seemingly almost reaching the tip of the Capitol dome itself.

The funnel cloud never touched down on the ground and therefore can’t be classified as a tornado. There was no damage and no reports of any other funnel clouds in the area Tuesday. But a photo of the thin, wispy twister curving over the Capitol drew more than 1 million views on Twitter.

Although the area around Washington isn’t considered a tornado hotspot, small proto-twisters like the one Tuesday “certainly do happen sometimes,” said Austin Mansfield, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

They’re most common during what Mansfield called “convection season” — the warm months running from spring through the end of summer. Although strong thunderstorms are fairly routine in the nation’s capital, Mansfield said a particular type of “spin in the atmosphere” is what tips things over into funnel cloud conditions.

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