An Angel seen in the sky, photographed by thousands of people

A message from above? This is what several South Florida residents thought after looking up to the sky on the day a new pope was appointed. Many saw an angel in the clouds and grabbed their cameras to document the vision.

For some, it was a clear sign from heaven, perhaps a message from God himself, which showed pleasure in the election of the first Latin American as the 267th successor of St. Peter. Thom George wondered "if Pope Francis had ordered it." "The Pope asked to pray for him. God replied," was Cat Sunn's reaction. Although most felt that the cloud looked like an angel and was a beautiful sign from above, others saw something less angelic in the cloud. Cristina Pina thought that the cloud resembled a sea monkey. While Steve Massie said that "seeing shapes and faces in non-human objects is called" pareidolia ".

Journalist Jodi Guthrie was the first, but not the last, to send a photo. Many shared their images showing different angles of the "angel" cloud. Like a Rorschach inkblot test, the angel cloud means different things to different people. But one thing is clear: it has captured the imagination. Over 34.000 people saw the photo on our Facebook page and hundreds shared their feelings about what it means. Monica Magalhaes contributed to this story.