Photos of Clouds and Skies (That you took yourself)

[FatPhil]

On the pub-crawl last night (there were contrails too, as the airport is behind us, but alas they didn't get in frame):

 

[Mythic Suns]

captured this one back in late August

 

[NorCal Dave]

Unfortunately for much of the country, Christmas '22 is a deep freeze, but here in Nor Cal we were blessed with a lovely Christmas Eve sunset (and mid 50sF). Although, I'm still trying to figure out how the clouds can appear to be up-lit like this, giving that the Earth is flat.

Merry Christmas and such!

 

[NorCal Dave]

While helping a neighbor on their house, I walked out to see this wild contrail. Apparently the pilot of this A380 went through a chicane on the way to SFO.

 

[JMartJr]

I liked the repeating "waves" here, echoed by the repeating pattern down closer to the tree line.

 

[Mythic Suns]

A couple of shots I took with my drone today showing some looming clouds. It was surprisingly warm today. These were both shot near Exeter, UK.

 

[NorCal Dave]

A couple of shots I took with my drone today showing some looming clouds. It was surprisingly warm today. These were both shot near Exeter, UK. View attachment 57880View attachment 57881

Lovely! It's what a California person would think the rolling green hills of the UK looks like. I see your near Dartmoor, isn't that where the "moors" are in Sherlock Holmes Hounds of the Baskervilles? I loved the book back when and the Basil Rathbone film version scarred the hell out of my kids when they were younger.

 

[Mythic Suns]

Lovely! It's what a California person would think the rolling green hills of the UK looks like. I see your near Dartmoor, isn't that where the "moors" are in Sherlock Holmes Hounds of the Baskervilles? I loved the book back when and the Basil Rathbone film version scarred the hell out of my kids when they were younger.

I believe so, though I'm not much of a literary person in all honesty. It's also the same Dartmoor Hitman III's "A Day to Remember" DLC is set in, however it should be noted that the house they set that DLC in is completely fictitious.

 

[Trailblazer]

Fall-streak holes over Hampshire this morning. I don't think the bird was responsible.

 

[Mythic Suns]

Shot from Fordton near Crediton, Mid Devon, UK about an hour ago (7:30am)

 

[noy]

The effect can be quite striking. This is a picture I took myself in 2018.
Also have a video, the shadow crossed the whole sky, but the most fascinating part is the visual illusion of pixelation where the cloud creates the shadow.

 

[FatPhil]

I don't remember seeing one of these before - it's a "supernumerary rainbow", an additional set of bands abutting the inside of the primary rainbow. A google image search for shows they're not rare - but perhaps that's just survivorship bias, the best rainbows get photographed more. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow#Supernumerary_rainbows

 

[JMartJr]

You managed to get another faint one above the "primary" one as well. You are going to have SO MUCH GOLD!!!!

 

[FatPhil]

You managed to get another faint one above the "primary" one as well. You are going to have SO MUCH GOLD!!!!

I couldn't see that at the time, I did spend many seconds looking for a secondary, but with no joy. And my potato has a terrible screen, so I didn't notice it when showing my g/f the photo later. However, I can pick it out now - thanks for drawing it to my attention! (Edit: I do have deficient colour vision, so surprise levels at such failings should be low.)

 

[RTM]

Here are a few photos from the Northern California coast, just South of Half Moon Bay. This was around sun rise where the sun was up but just starting to climb above some hills behind me. I think it was the time and orientation that gave this almost rainbow effect of the first photo and then my shadow being cast into the middle of the second photo (I think this effect gives rise to paranormal type reports). The third photo shows the dramatic rolling of fog that happens a lot here, that photo doesn't do it justice though.

 

[Giddierone]

A "cloud".

 

[AmberRobot]

I noticed this a while back and took a reasonably poor photo of it with my phone. There was an arc through a cloud and I presume an airplane caused it because this is a typical direction for the planes leaving a nearby airport. But I don't understand the meteorology enough to know why a plane would carve out an arc through the clouds rather than just travel through. Ideas?

 

[Ann K]

But I don't understand the meteorology enough to know why a plane would carve out an arc through the clouds rather than just travel through. Ideas?

Is it an arc through the clouds? Or is it merely a bright contrail in the moist air below the visible dark cloud?

 

[AmberRobot]

Is it an arc through the clouds? Or is it merely a bright contrail in the moist air below the visible dark cloud?

It doesn't show in the photo well but it looked like a gap in the clouds with blue sky showing through. Unfortunately, because it was back in February my memory of it isn't perfect and all I have is this crappy photon. Wish I had my real camera on me instead of just a phone.

 

[Jon Adams]

View attachment 69346I noticed this a while back and took a reasonably poor photo of it with my phone. There was an arc through a cloud and I presume an airplane caused it because this is a typical direction for the planes leaving a nearby airport. But I don't understand the meteorology enough to know why a plane would carve out an arc through the clouds rather than just travel through. Ideas?

That's a sky tornado!

Really, I didn't see what you described until I read what you presumed it was. Of course, then I couldn't unsee what you had offered, yet my sky tornado still stands out. Covering up parts of the image (especially the juicy white arc at the middle) and attempting to resist your suggestion was difficult, but it seems that it's just clouds, and perhaps a contrail. There are occasional features I see on Zoom Earth that make me think wildfires, even tho when I push the wayback button the entire feature has drifted with time, making what I thot was a point of combustion entirely too mobile to be a wildfire.

Without other evidence from different sensors at different locations and angles, it's hard to determine whether its illusion or not.

Cheers - Jon

 

[Trailblazer]

It doesn't show in the photo well but it looked like a gap in the clouds with blue sky showing through. Unfortunately, because it was back in February my memory of it isn't perfect and all I have is this crappy photon. Wish I had my real camera on me instead of just a phone.

It certainly looks like a distrail, which is a gap caused by a plane flying through the cloud and evaporating the moisture. They usually form at lower altitudes than contrails.

By coincidence I came here to post some distrail photos I took today.

I actually watched and videoed this one forming.

This trail was formed at around 11,000-14,000 feet by a Virgin Atlantic 787 climbing out of Heathrow.

This one was formed at a similar height by a British Airways flight coming in to land at Heathrow.

 

[FatPhil]

By coincidence I came here to post some distrail photos I took today.

Those are genuinely the best examples I've ever seen - well done sir!
I was gonna post my (potato-taken) "rainbow reaches the ground (being in front of near building rather than behind it)" photo but after seeing those I don't think I will.

 

[FatPhil]

Those are genuinely the best examples I've ever seen - well done sir!
I was gonna post my (potato-taken) "rainbow reaches the ground (being in front of near building rather than behind it)" photo but after seeing those I don't think I will.

Well, I wouldn't have done, were it not for the two mysterious craft that I apparently managed to capture! I didn't see them at the time, they must have materialised out of nowhere but as soon as they saw I had my camera out they sped away at infinite speed.

For scale, I was in this pub, looking in the direction of this building:

I genuinely think I've never seen a rainbow so close before.

 

[Ann K]

I genuinely think I've never seen a rainbow so close before.

I've seen a rainbow in the spray from my garden hose when I was out watering the petunias. Same water, same sun, same appearance, from a distance of 18 inches.

 

[Trailblazer]

I genuinely think I've never seen a rainbow so close before.

I have a very vivid memory of seeing a rainbow ending on the ground just a few yards in front of me as I was walking home from school in a heavy shower many years ago. I remember being told that that was impossible, but I swear I saw it.

I even remember exactly where it was (modern-day Street View image, but not much has changed in the past 35 years):

I was cutting across the grass from left to right (which is pretty well north) and the rainbow ended on the grass between the trees in front of me. I guess it must have been a "local" rainbow caused by a shaft of sunlight coming between the trees and illuminating the rain?

 

[Mendel]

I guess it must have been a "local" rainbow caused by a shaft of sunlight coming between the trees and illuminating the rain?

To see a rainbow, the sun must shine behind you, and water droplets must be in front of you. The density of droplets determines the strength of the rainbow; so in a heavy shower (or @Ann K 's garden hose spray) a relatively short distance can produce a strong enough image.

 

[Giddierone]

 

[FatPhil]

I don't remember seeing one of these before - it's a "supernumerary rainbow", an additional set of bands abutting the inside of the primary rainbow. A google image search for shows they're not rare - but perhaps that's just survivorship bias, the best rainbows get photographed more. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow#Supernumerary_rainbows

Derek at Veritasium has done an excellent video on the science of rainbows, supernumerary rainbows included, they are apparently a hybrid effect, effectively a rainbow (reinforcement of caustics from reflections) plus a glory (diffraction, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_(optical_phenomenon) ):

Source: https://youtu.be/watch?v=24GfgNtnjXc

 

[JMartJr]

I have a very vivid memory of seeing a rainbow ending on the ground just a few yards in front of me as I was walking home from school in a heavy shower many years ago. I remember being told that that was impossible, but I swear I saw it.

Yeah, local water spray/droplets can cause local rainbows.

 

[Trailspotter]

Yeah, local water spray/droplets can cause local rainbows.

On a slightly bigger scale

 

[Leekster]

Vero Beach area.
My wife and i watching a storm come in.

 

[Leekster]

 

[purpleivan]

A couple of shots I took with my drone today showing some looming clouds. It was surprisingly warm today. These were both shot near Exeter, UK. View attachment 57880View attachment 57881

Just noticed these pics, Looks like they were taken here. 50°45'25.01"N 3°31'32.77"W, near where the River Exe and River Creedy meet.

I've actually ridden a homemade raft (with a few friends) down the Creedy and the Exe, back in the late 70's. An annual charity race called the "Exe Struggle". Don't know if it's something that's still being done now.

 

[ManInBlack]

Disappointed I didn't do a wide angle at the time.

 

[Mythic Suns]

Just noticed these pics, Looks like they were taken here. 50°45'25.01"N 3°31'32.77"W, near where the River Exe and River Creedy meet.

That's about right. I think I launched the drone from the path that's a just a bit to the West of that spot.

I've actually ridden a homemade raft (with a few friends) down the Creedy and the Exe, back in the late 70's. An annual charity race called the "Exe Struggle". Don't know if it's something that's still being done now.

I'll have to look into that.

 

[FastIndy]

In the pictures that follow I'm usually shooting for as normal of a white balance as possible to what my eyes were seeing.
Normal sky:

Microburst: The mushroom cloud look was real on this, not fisheye. I was digging sand and dirt out of my teeth for a few hours when the front hit about a minute after taking this. I should look up the historical radar data for this.

 

[FastIndy]

And a few more:

This is a good one. Guess the cloud ceiling (because I have no idea):

One of my dad's:

 

[Ann K]

In the pictures that follow I'm usually shooting for as normal of a white balance as possible to what my eyes were seeing.

Those are some great photos! But of course, what your eyes see changes as the light changes, and your iris opens or closes. You must be out in the Great Plains somewhere, it would appear.

 

[JMartJr]

Amazing pictures, am enjoying them immensely.

 

[Scaramanga]

Strange 'orb' near the Moon...that I photographed. Must be a UFO !

Or, on the other hand, this is the true angular size of Venus relative to the Moon.....