Unravelling the mystery of fire whirls

Footage of spectacular fire whirls are all over the internet, and last month four ripped through a pastoral property in Western Australia. But what exactly are they?

Key points

 * Fire whirls are dust devils that suck up flames from a fire
 * Fire whirls are not true tornadoes
 * Short-lived fire whirls are common
 * Fire whirls that last long enough to film are relatively rare

We asked Andrew Sullivan, a senior fire researcher from the CSIRO, to give us a bit more information about the mysterious phenomena.

Dr Sullivan was quick to down play the hype.

"Fire whirls are very common," he said.

But he did admit they were rather spectacular.

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-11/unravelling-mystery-of-fire-whirls/9035222?WT.ac=statenews_sa