A waterspout tornado was spotted near an airport in Malaysia.

Locals witnessed the water vortex whirling behind a hill near Penang International Airport on November 13.

Footage captured by a Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) employee from the airport's traffic control tower shows the waterspout briefly rotating in the air, lasting only 30 seconds before dissipating into thin air.

The weather phenomenon formed in the sea behind the island's airport.

Two types of tornadoes form at sea - tornadic waterspouts and fair-weather waterspouts. Tornadic waterspouts form from thunderstorms, just like land tornadoes, while fair-weather waterspouts are typically smaller and less powerful without the need for storms.

Both types of waterspout tornadoes are created when there is a strong difference in air pressure between the surface of the water and the air above it. This difference in pressure creates an updraft, which draws air from the surface of the water into the atmosphere. As the air rises, it cools and condenses, forming a cloud. The cloud can then rotate, forming a waterspout.

It is rare for waterspouts to cause severe damage. However, in August 2023 two tourists were killed and six injured when a waterspout tornado hit their boat on an estuary river in Phetchaburi, southern Thailand.