This colorful high cloud chunk, detached from the south side of an extensive anvil shield to the NW, exuded marvelous iridescence for just a few minutes. Young, thin clouds with small variations in drop size sometimes produce this effect through diffraction—usually near the sun, as in this instance. Through its short lifespan, the formation blazed yellow-orange, orange-red (right before I grabbed the camera), then a mix of reddish, green and turquoise tones as shown here, before spreading out and losing color intensity. Smaller fragments of iridescent clouds can be seen below the main swath. I deliberately underexposed this shot to darken the sky and make the colors stand out better against it.
Norman OK (6 Jul 15) Looking WIridescent Cloud
This colorful high cloud chunk, detached from the south side of an extensive anvil shield to the NW, exuded marvelous iridescence for just a few minutes. Young, thin clouds with small variations in drop size sometimes produce this effect through diffraction—usually near the sun, as in this instance. Through its short lifespan, the formation blazed yellow-orange, orange-red (right before I grabbed the camera), then a mix of reddish, green and turquoise tones as shown here, before spreading out and losing color intensity. Smaller fragments of iridescent clouds can be seen below the main swath. I deliberately underexposed this shot to darken the sky and make the colors stand out better against it.
Norman OK (6 Jul 15) Looking W