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Love those distant travelers, Hans. Hope to see them over here soon.
Alec, I hope that millstone keeps grinding them out.
And stunning photo, Michael. Here in California, we had a softer peachy glow last night…
Cloverpatch, your image with the barbed wire fence looks as if someone thought those frisky KH clouds could be corralled. Imagine that!
Alec, thanks — the reflection explanation made perfect sense. And yet I couldn’t imagine where it would have come from until this morning when I noticed my iPhone, lying screen down on my desk, right below the image in question on my computer. And VOILA, mystery solved! The closed car window had captured the reflected white area surrounding the dark circular camera lens while the reflection of the blue case blended perfectly with the sky. A giant powdered sugar donut in the sky? No substance to that one — no calories either!
Thank you, Hans, and the conclusion you and your biologist friends reached could not be more true. Beauty abounds! Sometimes when we’re surprised by it, the body responds in telling ways — breathing shifts, eyebrows rise, a smile forms, and then there’s that stillness in which the ordinary moment becomes “liminal” (defined as that moment when a person has stepped across a psychological threshold out of the ordinary world of existence into a new place where they are open to experience, something undefined).
You have The Complete Proof! And if Santa has indeed fallen, he’ll have had the ride of his life through the clouds. Below, The Curve Crosses The Pond as well.
Relieved to see Lacerta (several posts back now) made it across the pond, Hans. As you can see, the voyage was not without its challenges!
Dangerous PassageCephalopod! Exactly what I saw as well, Alec, in Michael’s gorgeous image (which I would love to bring into a dream with me). And Hans, referring again to your comment (Halos thread) on where beauty may be found, it is indeed in all directions, Left And Right, Above Or Below.
This collection is really outstanding. Even the greys are luscious here. And after the grinding, all is calm, all is bright.
The game is fun, Alec! And it certainly has me looking up in a new way, so thanks for the inspired play. Having a forum topic devoted to contrails has definitely peaked my interest in them, although ever since Hans posted earlier photos of showing Crow Instability Vortex (like his beautiful “Just for now” image above), I’ve been looking much closer for the effect. Haven’t captured any just yet, but that doesn’t diminish the fun of searching.
While I can’t add to the game’s collection, here’s a mystery that I’m not sure where to post (but it does at least have a contrail in it). There was a tiny detail below the contrail I noticed while riding in a car a couple of days ago. It was too far away to capture, but I took a shot anyway. Later, when I downloaded the image and tweaked the contrast just a bit, this subtle powdered sugar donut emerged. Any clue as to what this might be? Had I known it would appear, I’d have taken another shot without the traffic pole smack in the middle of it.
I agree with you, Hans. There’s great beauty in the diversity and the Wide View featured here!
Flying Down Memory LaneWhat a beauty, Cloverpatch ~~ thanks for sharing. It’s like a warm hug at the end of the day ~~ great for one’s blood pressure!
Thank you, Hans, that makes sense to me about the Dec 15th image being a 22˚ halo. As for the most recent one, I don’t recall at all where the sun was. Can anything be determined by the layered order of colors?
As for sharing our enthusiasm about the wonders of the sky with others, I’ll never forget the following encounter. (I hope it’s okay to post this here.)
Just as the downpour began, I dashed into a local deli. An elderly man who’d been on his way out, stood transfixed in the doorway eyeing the display of darkening clouds, his face lit in childlike glee. We shared a few moments of quiet wonder punctuated with overtones of “Wow!” as thunder rumbled.
“I’m 84”, he began, “grew up on a farm. We used to lie in the fields and see all kinds of things in the clouds! Do people do that anymore?” I smiled and told him about the Cloud Appreciation Society and its tens of thousands of members who feel doing so is a far cry from a waste of time. “You don’t say!” He shook his head in amazement. I drew out my phone to share some photos.
“You’ve still got it!”, I assured him when he quickly spotted the Pig in PJs, a complex Cumulous Rorschach. We both took a breath and then he sighed, “I love that smell, the first rain! I know there’s a word for it…. but I can’t remember what it is…” I leaned in to touch his arm and whisper, “Petrichor!”, like a secret code assuring him we’re on the same side. “That’s it! That’s it! Thank you! And the Cloud Appreciation Society, I won’t forget that!”. He made his way out, into the wet, eyes to the skies, chanting his new mantra lest it slip away like the passing storm.
Wish I could say, George, but I don’t know much at all about these apparitions — other than it’s been rare for me to catch one. It was late afternoon, and I believe the sun was below what’s shown. The palm tree might be misleading regarding angle, as I was in fact looking slightly up from just straight ahead. In the future, I must take notes! Maybe Alec or Hans can illuminate us?
And Hans, your 22 degrees, sundogs, parhelic (parts) ,UTA, Parry, supralateral, CZA is absolutely stunning! Thank you for launching this new forum thread where we can see and share these gems.
Alec, your simple 22 is so lovely. You shine!
Below is an image from a year ago that made my day. But again, I don’t know what to call it.
Dangerous Passage
Flying Down Memory Lane
