Florida Max Road Fire in Broward creating towering pyrocumulus clouds

• A wildfire in the Florida Everglades created unusual cauliflower-shaped clouds called pyrocumulus clouds.
• These "fire clouds" form when intense heat from a fire causes moist air to rise and condense high in the atmosphere.
• The Max Road fire grew to 7,000 acres and the resulting clouds reached over 15,000 feet in altitude.
• Florida's high humidity can make the formation of pyrocumulus clouds more common during wildfires.

A newly sparked wildfire belched ashy cauliflower-shaped clouds into Florida skies, high enough to pique the interest of orbiting satellites and Mother’s Day commuters alike.

The Max Road fire, which was reported Sunday, May 10 in the Everglades along the border of Miami-Dade and Broward counties, took advantage of the fierce heat of the flames and Florida’s famously high humidity to produce the unusual cloud formations.

Called pyrocumulus clouds, or “fire clouds”, they are often seen over wildfires and volcanic eruptions as moist air in the fire heats up faster than its surroundings. Warm air is less dense than cooler air, so it rises into the upper layers of the troposphere and condenses. The water vapor can cling to ash particles and clumpy clouds form.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration highlighted the fire and pyrocumulus clouds in images from the GOES East satellite on its X account Monday. The clouds were also noted by the National Weather Service in Miami as they soared to higher than 15,000 feet, widely visible across the flat Everglades landscape.

“The heat from the fire is so intense it creates its own microclimate,” said  Inspire Weather meteorologist and former Tampa area NWS meteorologist Brian LaMarre. “They are relatively rare.”

LaMarre referenced the May 8 eruption of Indonesia’s Dukono volcano that created a massive pyrocumulus cloud that stabbed into an otherwise bright blue sky.

LaMarre said the cauliflower effect in the clouds is a function of individual pockets of warm moist air rising separately, creating the look of bumps or cauliflower when the moisture cools high in the atmosphere.

And pyrocumulus clouds may be more common in Florida.

“In a humid place like South Florida, the air is closer to saturation from the start,” said Bill Line, a NOAA physical scientist who oversees image production at the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service. “So, it takes less cooling for a cloud to form.”

Fires and volcanoes can also form their own thunderstorms if pyrocumulonimbus clouds grow from the heat and moisture they create. Lightning from the pyrocumulonimbus clouds can start new fires.

“Some pyrocumulonimbus clouds can reach heights of 30,000 to 50,000 feet (9 to 15 km)! That’s far above the height most airplanes fly,” wrote EarthSky.org science writer Kelly Kizer Whitt in a May 1 column.

Miami-based National Weather Service metoeorlogist Ana Torres-Vazquez said the pyrocumulus clouds from the Max Road fire didn’t contain any lightning on Sunday and there is hope for rain this week that could dampen the fire.

As of Monday, the fire had expanded from 5,000 to 7,000 acres and was 40% contained. Senior Forester Michelle Danielson said the cause of the fire is unknown.

The forecast has a 40% to 70% chance of showers possible in South Florida with thunderstorms Tuesday through Thursday.

Kimberly Miller is a journalist for the USA TODAY NETWORK FLORIDA. She covers weather, the environment and critters as the Embracing Florida reporter. If you have news tips, please send them to [email protected]. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at palmbeachpost.com/newsletters.