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What's the difference between a scud cloud and a tornado?
AccuWeather
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7/2/2025
As people at an Atlanta Braves game on July 1 experienced, scud clouds can be a very scary sight. If you're looking at the sky and think you see a tornado, how exactly do you tell the difference?
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00:01
Did you think this was a tornado behind Atlanta Braves Stadium?
00:04
You're not alone. Plenty of people across Atlanta thought the same thing.
00:08
But the scary sight from July 1st? Just a scud cloud.
00:12
Scud clouds look intimidating, but they're actually harmless.
00:16
They're low-hanging, ragged-looking clouds that form during thunderstorms.
00:20
Usually when warm, moist air rises and condenses at lower altitudes.
00:24
Kind of like fog. They're often hanging below the main storm cloud
00:28
and can even appear to swirl. Especially when humidity is high.
00:32
That's why they're so often mistaken for tornadoes.
00:36
But here's the key difference. No rotation.
00:40
No spin means no threat. Just a weird, fascinating product
00:44
of the atmosphere doing its thing.
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