Video Shows Cloud 'Falling From the Sky' Near Indonesian Construction Site?

In mid-November 2024, videos appeared on Instagram claiming to show a cloudlike object "falling from the sky" near a construction site on the island of Borneo in Indonesia. 

The video showed workers of an Indonesian coal mining company, Adaro Energy, running toward the "cloud" as it landed on the ground. The video spread to other platforms, with reposts on Reddit, Facebook and X.

The video is real — it is not the product of artificial intelligence software or digital manipulation — and indeed shows a cloudlike object falling from the sky in Indonesia.

However, based on the science of natural cloud formation, it is not a naturally forming weather cloud. The Indonesian government's meteorological agency suggested that the formation contained chemicals used in mining processes.

We reached out to Adaro Energy for more information about the formation's possible components. We are waiting for a response.

Natural clouds are made up of ice crystals and water droplets, which have little to no weight, allowing clouds to float in the sky. According to Scientific American, the same scientific principles are at work when a beam of sunlight highlights tiny particles of dust in the air.

But because gravity is pulling the "cloud" to the ground in this case, something other than water must be weighing it down.

Additionally, the formation largely holds its shape as it touches the ground, suggesting it possibly has more of a foam consistency than that of a weather cloud. Some users on Reddit compared the formation to toxic foam sometimes seen in highly polluted rivers. 

Commenting on the object in the video, a spokesperson from the Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency told CNN Indonesia: "The phenomenon is most likely not natural clouds, but condensation of water vapor or gas due to human activities that occur in mining areas."

That seemed plausible given that the video was recorded at a site with Adaro Energy workers and Borneo's large mining industry.