The society for people who love the sky

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Today's Cloud-a-Day

Tuesday 15th October 2024

A distant storm at sea, viewed from the shore? No, this is a fluctus cloud, spotted by Pam Bauer (Member 49,839) as she was collecting shells on the beach near Port Townsend, Washington, US. Also known as Kelvin-Helmholtz wave clouds, fluc…

Cloud of the Month

October 2024

Meet the mother of all storm cloud features, and learn if it tells you that the storm’s heading towards you or away from you, in Cloud of the Month for October...

Our Memory Cloud Atlas

On Cloud Appreciation Day, Friday September 13th, 2024, friends and members of the Cloud Appreciation Society contributed photographs of their skies to our Memory Cloud Atlas. The Atlas was open for contributions on this day only. It stands as a snapshot of a world looking up and appreciating the sky on one particular day.

Get our new book: Cloudspotting for Beginners

A collaboration with award-winning illustrator William Grill, Cloudspotting for Beginners is a stunning introduction to clouds and the sky. We are very proud of this beautiful hardback book. Charming, uplifting, and easy to understand for all ages, Cloudspotting for Beginners will inspire anyone curious about clouds to look up at the sky with a new understanding and appreciation.

Recent Clouds Spotted

New from our Members

Cloud Videos
Eileen Hennemann, Member 27,616 was extraordinarily  lucky to ...
Cloud Art
Julia Dedieu, Member 63,285 sent this, her second ...
Cloud Poetry
Simon Rickman, a cloud enthusiast, was inspired by ...
Cloud Art
Starr Sutherland, Member 58,384, wrote to tell us ...

A Survival Kit for the Imagination

Our downloadable lesson plans and resources for schools and homeschools teaching about the sky.

News

Lacunosus over Beaconsfield, United States

Why You Should Be Looking Up

Cloud Appreciation Society founder, Gavin Pretor-Pinney, Member 001, was recently invited to join Amanda Yorwerth on the podcast, Environment Matters. They discussed all things cloudlike along with Cloud Appreciation Day which is coming up this Friday, 13th September.You can listen to the Environment Matters Podcast hereImage credit: Lacunosus over Beaconsfield, United States by Cheryl Lappin

Earth’s Jet Stream: Creating the Seeds that Generate Clouds

Clouds form when water vapour condenses or freezes around tiny particles, called cloud condensation nuclei, that are suspended in the atmosphere. These particles are hygroscopic, meaning they attract water. Examples of cloud condensation nuclei, also called cloud seeds, include dust, ocean salt, and sulfuric acid particles. Often, entirely new particles are formed in the atmosphere […]

EarthCARE: A New Satellite Getting to the Heart of Clouds

On May 28, 2024, the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) teamed up to launch a 3-year mission called EarthCARE in order to profile Earth’s clouds to see what effect they are having on climate change. Different cloud formations interact with sunlight in different ways. For example, the low, thick, […]