The image, snapped from a pᴀssenger plane, reveals a shape clearly distinct from the clouds.
It even appears to take a humanoid shape, casting a shadow with two easily discernible arms and legs.
Nick O’Donoghue, who took the picture, said it was taken en-route to Cork in Ireland aboard an Easyjet flight.
He told Irish lifestyle website Joe.ie that he had been heading home for Christmas via Gatwick airport.
Posted to Reddit, the picture sparked speculation as to what had caused the mysterious formation.
A number of commenters said the figure looked like the children’s character the Iron Giant.
Others hazarded a guess that it was smoke stacks from the ground penetrating the clouds.
“Two smoke stacks under the low clouds, so two streams of smoke,” said one person.
