Category: Cloud of the Month

Every month, we choose one of our favourite photographs from the Cloud Gallery to become our Cloud of the Month.

November 2013

November’s Cloud of the Month features the cloud feature known as a tuba. This finger of cloud forms within the rotating air below a Cumulonimbus storm cloud…

June 2013

This month’s choice is taken from one of our favourite parts of the Cloud Appreciation Society photography gallery…

Cloud of the Month for March 2013

March 2013

This month’s cloud, spotted by Marc Puigdomenech over Tortosa, Catalonia, Spain, is a huge Altocumulus cloud of the species known as ‘lenticularis’…

Cloud of the Month for February 2013

February 2013

The Cloud of the Month for February is Basil Stathoulis’s photograph of dramatic thunderstorms lined up across the vast expanse of Botswana’s Okavango Delta…

Cloud of the Month for January 2013

January 2013

Very rare arcs and halos appeared at the end of October 2012 as the sunlight shone through the ice crystals of Cirrostratus clouds…

Cloud of the Month for October 2012

October 2012

Lightning can take many different paths as the enormous electrical charges that build up with in Cumulonimbus storm clouds suddenly redistribute themselves…

Cloud of the Month for July 2012

July 2012

Cloud of the Month for July 2012

A Picture Postcard from The Netherlands

Clouds appearing simultaneously at several different levels of our atmosphere is a common sight, one that is sometimes described as a ‘mixed sky’. The tranquil concoction of clouds chosen as July’s Cloud of the Month was spotted over the hamlet of Huls in the south of The Netherlands.

© Photograph Math Gossens.

Cloud of the Month for June 2012

June 2012

Cloud of the Month for June 2012

The Northern Lights

This month’s image is the notoriously elusive Aurora Borealis, also described as The Northern Lights. Photographer, Norman Shulman, was very fortunate in spotting this enchanting display over Myvatn, in N.E. Iceland. The natural light show in the sky occurs at its most spectacular over Arctic and Antarctic regions and is caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms in the earth’s high altitude atmosphere. The particles originate from solar storms are carried on solar winds before being lured to our atmosphere by the Earth’s magnetic field. And in the foreground? None other than our beloved Altocumulus lenticularis clouds, of course.

© Photograph Norman Shulman.

Cloud of the Month for May 2012

May 2012

Cloud of the Month for May 2012

The Sun Sets Over Bali

This month’s image is from the island of Bali in Indonesia. Unwind beneath the golden Altocumulus clouds. Bathe in the warmth of the sunset colours. On the horizon, the towering Cumulus are darkening in the shadow of the Earth, as the waves lap at your feet on the rippled sand of the water’s edge.

© Photograph Willem Tesselaar.

Cloud of the Month for April 2012

April 2012

Cloud of the Month for April 2012

Iridescence over Independence

This month’s cloud formation is a display of cloud iridescence. This colourful optical effect is caused by sunlight being diffracted as it passes around the cloud particles, and is seen mostly often when a cloud is forming or dissipating, which means its water droplets are all of a similar size. The beautiful and eery example shown here is in an Altocumulus cloud spotted by Andrew Kirk over Independence, California, US.

© Photograph Andrew Kirk.

Cloud of the Month for March 2012

March 2012

Cloud of the Month for March 2012

Florida Fog

This month’s dramatic image of stratus cloud pouring over condominiums, was observed initially by helicopter pilot Mike Schaeffer. He was completing a sightseeing tour when he spotted this strange weather phenomenon along Panama City Beach, Florida. On landing, he told the helicopter company owner, J.R. Hott, about the cloud formation and they both went up for a better view. They moved quickly, knowing that this beautiful effect could only occur in very specific weather conditions.

The fog formation has since been described in the media as a “cloud tsunami” but J.R. disagrees with this name. “The term tsunami implies a natural disaster,” he explained, “but this cloud effect, though it can form quickly, moves in a gradual manner. It only occurs in the presence of a gentle breeze.”

Photograph © JR Hott.

"February 2012 Cloud of the Month"

February 2012

"February 2012 Cloud of the Month"

Upside Down Lightning Over Penang, Malaysia.

This month’s image shows a dramatically different perspective on lightning, which here appears to be travelling upwards within the Cumulonimbus storm cloud. This type of lightning is sometimes described as spider or anvil crawler lightning, and was spotted over Penang, Malaysia, by Mike Sharp. He describes the area as “most exciting weatherwise”. How could we disagree?

Photograph © Mike Sharp.

Lenticularis clouds over Mount Rainier. © Ryan Verwest

January 2012

January 2012 Cloud of the Month

Iridescent Lenticular clouds over Mount Rainier

This month’s image shows the beautiful effect that can result from the sunlight shining through thin parts of a cloud where the tiny droplets or ice crystals all have similar sizes. The sunlight can be ‘diffracted’ as it passes around the miniscule particles. The result is that it is split into different wavelengths, which appear as the colours of the rainbow. This optical effect is called iridescence or irisation and tends to appear at the fringes of clouds. This fantastic example, captured by Ryan Verwest, shows iridescence in lenticular clouds, and was spotted over Mount Rainier, Washington, US.
Photograph © Ryan Verwest.

November 2011

November 2011 Cloud of the Month

A sunset over Mount Rainier

Mount Rainier’s shadow being cast onto the clouds above makes it look like it is erupting. The dramatic light effect was spotted over Washington, US.
Photograph © Nick Lippert.

October 2011

October 2011 Cloud of the Month

Cap clouds over the volcano brothers

The cloud-capped twin volcano brothers, Nevados de Payachata. The one with the crater at the top is the Parinacota volcano. The other is the Pomerape volcano. Location Bolivia, near the border of Chile.
Photograph © Alexandre Militao.

September 2011

September 2011 Cloud of the Month

A Singer Serenading the Sunset

Well, at least, it looks like one to us. Spotted over Valona, Albania.
Photograph © Maurizio Barbieri.

August 2011

Noctilucents over Edmonton

This month’s fantastic display of noctilucent clouds was spotted over Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Photograph © Hayley Dunning.

July 2011

July 2011 Cloud of the Month

A Light Show over Bangkok

This month’s electric display was spotted over Bangkok, Thailand.
Photograph © Sitthivet Santikarn.

June 2011

June 2011 Cloud of the Month

Minnesota Mammatus

The mammatus clouds that are this month’s pinups appeared below a storm rolling in at sunset over Lino Lakes, Minnesota, US.
Photograph © Jackie Zeleznikar.

May 2011

May 2011 Cloud of the Month

A Stroke of Colours

This month’s rainbow pinup was spotted over Alcalá de Henares, Spain.
Photograph © Adolfo Garcia-Marin.

April 2011

April 2011 Cloud of the Month

Rays and Shadows

These crepuscular rays and cloud shadows bursting out from around some Cumulus clouds were spotted over Bergamo, Italy.
Photograph © Fulvio Crotti Spreafico.

March 2011

Racing The Roll Cloud

This fantastic example of a roll cloud was spotted between Sydney and Marimbula during the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race 2010/2011.
Photograph © Carlo Borlenghi/Rolex.

February 2011

February 2011 Cloud of the Month

Faces in the Mammatus

Can you see them? Faces or no faces, we feel these dramatic mammatus clouds forming on a Cumulonimbus storm cloud over Douglas Bay, the Isle of Man, UK, are worthy winners of the title ‘Cloud of the Month’.
Photograph © Patricia Tutt.

January 2011

January 2011 Cloud of the Month

A Cloudspotting Dog

We always like to see cloudspotting pets, which is why our Cloud of the Month for this month features Bella Pumpkin, the cloudspotting dog, gazing up at a Cumulonimbus over Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite Lake, Cumbria, UK.
Photograph © Heidi Bailey.

Cloud of the Month for December 2010

December 2010

Cloud of the Month for December 2010

Contrail Creatures

This month’s image was spotted on a flight from Dublin to Spain, and do the contrails look to anyone else like, a Snake exiting stage left and a Frog leaping out of frame, top right?.

Photograph © John Gale.

Cloud of the Month for November 2010

November 2010

Cloud of the Month for November 2010

Storm Front Surprise

This month’s cloud is known as an arcus, or shelf cloud, which sometimes prodrudes from the front base of a Cumulonimbus storm cloud. It was spotted by Eunice Clarke over Turnberry, Ayrshire in Scotland. “It was amazing standing there,” Eunice told us, “I was taking landscape pics on a nice sunny evening, when this strong gusting wind came from nowhere. When I looked behind me, this is what I saw coming towards me.”

© Photograph Eunice Clarke.

Cloud of the Month for October 2010

October 2010

Cloud of the Month for October 2010

A Summer Storm

This month’s cloud is a Cumulonimbus cloud over Italy. Seen from below, it is unleashing ferocious lightning strikes on and around Lake Como.

Photograph © Barbara Mezzera.