As Pearland residents awaited the restoration of power following Hurricane Beryl, an unusual and eerie sight captured their attention. A dark, circular ring, resembling smoke, was observed drifting across the sky as the sun set, hours after the Category 1 hurricane made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Texas earlier that day. Videos shared on social media showed the ring moving slowly against a backdrop of a vibrant orange and pink sunset.
Local realtor Taylor Ann Guerrero first spotted the large ring around 8:32 p.m. from Pearland’s West Lea neighborhood. “We were outside for a while and didn’t hear anything unusual beforehand,” Guerrero said. The ring reportedly lingered in the sky for nearly 10 minutes. Guerrero and other witnesses posted footage on Facebook, hoping to uncover the source of the phenomenon.
The mysterious ring sparked a range of theories, from the light-hearted to the imaginative. Some joked that it was a sign of a new pope for Houston, a playful reference to the white smoke seen during papal elections. Others speculated about extraterrestrial involvement, with one Facebook user humorously suggesting that smoke signals were being used due to the power outage. Grizzy’s Hood News compiled the sightings, adding to the playful speculation.
Experts are also puzzled by the ring. Alan Reppert, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather, noted that temperatures in Pearland were in the upper 80s with dew points around 78 degrees at the time of the sighting. “There was also some stable air in the area,” Reppert explained. “Beyond that, we don’t have further information on how it might have formed.”
Guerrero mentioned receiving a variety of theories about the mysterious ring, ranging from bugs and birds to fireworks and a blown transformer. “And of course, there were plenty of funny responses too,” she added.
A similar thick, black smoke ring was spotted over Germany recently, which also went viral on social media and sparked similar speculation. However, the most plausible explanations for these rings are either the use of fireworks or an industrial malfunction, such as an exploding electrical transformer. This type of fault is a known consequence of Hurricane Beryl’s powerful winds, which downed power lines across Southeast Texas.
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