Jun. 5, 2023
The summer season for noctilucent clouds (NLCs) has begun. "They're back with a bang!' says Arnim Berhorst who saw the electric-blue clouds over Bergen, Norway--one of at least seven European countries where they were observed last night. Valther Jørgensen sends this picture from Djursland, Denmark:
"These luminous night clouds appeared for the first time over Denmark this summer," says Jørgensen.
NLCs are clouds of frosted meteor smoke. They form every year in summer when wisps of sunwarmed water vapor rise up to the edge of space. At altitudes greater than 80 km, the water crystallizes around disintegrated meteoroids, forming beautiful electric-blue structures.
Although these are the first NLCs seen from the ground, Earth-orbiting satellites have been monitoring them for more than a week. The NOAA-21 satellite saw them first on May 26th. In this 3 day animation, blue dots mark the location of clouds deep inside the Arctic Circle:
This is typical. NLCs always form first over the poles where temperatures are coldest--a necessity for making water molecules stick to meteoroids. From there, the clouds multiply and spread outward. In only 3 days (May 26, May 27, May 28), NOAA-21 saw cloud counts increase from 14 to 104 as they drifted south toward Europe.
Last night's sightings are just the beginning. Noctilucent cloud season typically runs from June to August. The clouds tend to brighten and become most widespread around the summer solstice, with sightings in recent years as far south as Spain and southern California. If you see an NLC, submit your photo here.
more images: from Krzysztof Spera of Warsaw, Poland; from P-M Hedén of Vallentuna Sweden; from Pentti Arpalahti of Helsinki, Finland; from Roberts Lazdins of Rude, Latvia; from Andy Stables of Milovaig, Glendale, Isle of Skye
See: https://spaceweather.com
Late spring and early summer mark the beginning of noctilucent cloud season in the northern hemisphere. The name derives from Latin, where noctilucent means “night shine”. These beautiful cloud formations can often be seen during the summer months shining with an electric blue colour against the darkening western sky about 30 minutes after the sun sets. The origin of the noctilucent clouds remains mysterious. They are the highest known clouds in Earth’s atmosphere, existing at an altitude of about 80km (50 miles), which is virtually the edge of space. They are regarded as being too high and too tenuous to have any effect on the weather at ground level.
Hartmann352
The summer season for noctilucent clouds (NLCs) has begun. "They're back with a bang!' says Arnim Berhorst who saw the electric-blue clouds over Bergen, Norway--one of at least seven European countries where they were observed last night. Valther Jørgensen sends this picture from Djursland, Denmark:
"These luminous night clouds appeared for the first time over Denmark this summer," says Jørgensen.
NLCs are clouds of frosted meteor smoke. They form every year in summer when wisps of sunwarmed water vapor rise up to the edge of space. At altitudes greater than 80 km, the water crystallizes around disintegrated meteoroids, forming beautiful electric-blue structures.
Although these are the first NLCs seen from the ground, Earth-orbiting satellites have been monitoring them for more than a week. The NOAA-21 satellite saw them first on May 26th. In this 3 day animation, blue dots mark the location of clouds deep inside the Arctic Circle:
This is typical. NLCs always form first over the poles where temperatures are coldest--a necessity for making water molecules stick to meteoroids. From there, the clouds multiply and spread outward. In only 3 days (May 26, May 27, May 28), NOAA-21 saw cloud counts increase from 14 to 104 as they drifted south toward Europe.
Last night's sightings are just the beginning. Noctilucent cloud season typically runs from June to August. The clouds tend to brighten and become most widespread around the summer solstice, with sightings in recent years as far south as Spain and southern California. If you see an NLC, submit your photo here.
more images: from Krzysztof Spera of Warsaw, Poland; from P-M Hedén of Vallentuna Sweden; from Pentti Arpalahti of Helsinki, Finland; from Roberts Lazdins of Rude, Latvia; from Andy Stables of Milovaig, Glendale, Isle of Skye
See: https://spaceweather.com
Late spring and early summer mark the beginning of noctilucent cloud season in the northern hemisphere. The name derives from Latin, where noctilucent means “night shine”. These beautiful cloud formations can often be seen during the summer months shining with an electric blue colour against the darkening western sky about 30 minutes after the sun sets. The origin of the noctilucent clouds remains mysterious. They are the highest known clouds in Earth’s atmosphere, existing at an altitude of about 80km (50 miles), which is virtually the edge of space. They are regarded as being too high and too tenuous to have any effect on the weather at ground level.
Hartmann352
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