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You’ve seen an F-22 go supersonic, but have you seen an FA-18 emerge from a concentrated cloud of blue vapor!

You have now. What kind of atmospheric conditions would lead to such an apparition? National Geographic has the answer:

Photographer Kirk McMenamin, who submitted this image to National Geographic’s “Your Shot” writes:

“This is a shot of an FA-18 performing a high-speed pass that resulted in a vapor cone forming around the back half of the plane. When viewed head-on, it made the plane appear to be coming out of a porthole. The photo was taken during the 2009 Gold Cup Races on the Detroit River.”

Cool huh. I did some research, and by research I mean I just used Google image search, and found a much clearer image of this phenomenon:

And this easy to understand diagram:

~ by Fionnlagh on August 11, 2009.

Posted in 📷 P H O T O G R A P H Y, 🔬 S C I E N C E/T E C H : N A T U R E 🌲, 🕶️ C O O L : S T U F F
Tags: 009 Gold Cup Races on the Detroit River, a shock wave causing adiabatic cooling of water vapor which can make this drmatic form when a plane traveling LESS than the speed of sounds travels through moisture-laden air., Air Force F-18, Air Force F-22 Raptor, Epic Photography, FA-18 Transdimensional Portal Re-entry, FA-18 Transonic Portal Re-entry, ghostlyfighter, have you seen an FA-18 emerge from a concentrated cloud of blue vapor!, National Geographic, Photographer Kirk McMenamin, Shockwaves, Speed of Sound, Supersonic Sonic Boom, Transonic Jet