VIDEO: Rare reverse waterfall spotted on Australian cliffside

Video from Katoomba, a town in New South Wales, taken on Aug. 2, captured the rare phenomenon of a reverse waterfall. Winds create strong updrafts which blow the waterfall up, instead of it flowing down. 

KATOOMBA, Australia– The rare phenomenon known as a reverse waterfall was recently seen happening on a cliffside in Australia. 

The video, taken on Aug. 2, showed what is usually a normal waterfall spewing out from a cliff in the far distance, flowing up into the air instead. 

Reverse waterfall seen on cliffside in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. 

(Luke Buckle via Storyful / FOX Weather)

As the video zoomed in, a closer look of the water blowing up into the sky was visible. 

Reverse waterfalls happen when strong winds create intense updrafts that can cause waterfalls to blow backwards. 

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Reverse waterfall seen on Aug, 2, 2025 in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. 

(Luke Buckle via Storyful / FOX Weather)

Luke Buckle, the recorder of the video, told Storyful he took his family on a trip to the Sublime Point lookout near Katoomba on a very windy day when they saw the dramatic result of the weather conditions.

Buckle said seeing the waterfall in reverse “felt like spotting a UFO.”