As gusty winds rolled through southwest Michigan Monday morning, a local drone photographer captured waterspouts and a double rainbow over Lake Michigan near St. Joseph and Benton Harbor.
Nathan Voytovick, a Lakeshore High School graduate who co-owns Midwest & Great Lakes Storm Chasers and operates Nates Dronography, posted a video of the waterspouts and double rainbow to his Facebook page. .
“Well after trying for years I was finally able to capture a few waterspouts,” said Voytovick, in the post. “They were small rope waterspouts that only lived 1-2 minutes! The 3rd was the big one but it just didn’t have enough to touch the lake! Clips are slightly sped up. At the end, there was a beautiful double rainbow.”
According to the National Weather Service, waterspout formation typically occurs when cold air moves across the Great Lakes and results in large temperature differences between the warm water and the overriding cold air. They tend to last from about two to twenty minutes, and move along at speeds of 10 to 15 knots.
Voytovick, who often posts drone videos of St. Joseph and southwest Michigan to his social media pages also posted a photo of a double rainbow captured later on Monday morning.
Voytovick provides his drone footage for free to the community, and has started a GoFundMe for a new drone.
“For years I’ve provided free content to my followers, news agencies, events and much more,” he said, in a Facebook post. “You may be surprised to know I only have 1 drone, and it’s on its last leg! I love what I do and would never charge for my photos. I can’t wait to keep showing off our community. … Photos and videos will REMAIN FREE thanks to the generosity of you all, regardless of anything I receive. I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
(Images from Nates Dronography Facebook)
