Michael Dixon looked out in the morning from his home in Saint-George, Vaud, Switzerland to see range after range of mountains and clouds so layered it was hard to tell land from sky. John Gault (Member 65,544) shared this spotting with us so we could tease them apart.

Hanging over the foreground hills are white peaks of Stratus fractus, ragged, shredded bits of low cloud that form as Stratus layers break up in turbulent, moist air. Up at high altitude, feathery streaks of Cirrostratus gleam in the morning light, speared through by the crisp line of an aircraft’s contrail. Looking like a distant island is a darker band of Altostratus just above the sharp ridges of the Dent du Midi mountain range. One peak, the Grand Muveran, is topped by a neat Altocumulus lenticularis. Illuminated from the far side, the shadow at its centre and the brightness of its sunlit edges give this the appearance of a mountain halo.

This is a good way to start the day.