SkyPix

A digital photographic storybook of clouds, weather and water by Roger Edwards.

Supercellular Sparkle

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Despite gradually weakening since its near-sunset peak, the Arcadia supercell continued blasting forth lightning from every level.  When we finally were able to get enough distance between us and the storm to feel reasonably safe outdoors, the pace of the best lightning had lessened considerably.  Still, this storm offered a few more reminders of its capability to deliver instant death, and this … [Read more...]

Travertine Takeover

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Upon pondering Yellowstone National Park, most folks think of geysers, wildlife, hot pools, mountains:  all amazing and worthy of the camera, for sure.  Yet in one corner of the park lies a grimly stark landscape frontng the distant Absaroka Range—ledges of travertine, precipitated from old hot springs, that entombed the trees they encountered.  In the dry, high-altitude climate, the old arboreal … [Read more...]

Cascades below Yst i-Rjukandi

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A short distance downhill and downstream from the “Yst i-Rjukandi” waterfall set, this fine, unnamed cascade offers what looks like a refreshing place to take a cool plunge.  Of course, the dip would be described better as a frigid cardiac jolt, considering that the stream drains snow and ice in the Icelandic Highlands just  a few degrees latitude below the Arctic Circle.  Hence, not even the … [Read more...]

Circumzenithal Arc

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We so often miss interesting visual effects, especially on days of placid weather, because they're going on almost directly overhead and with little fanfare. I'm glad, therefore, someone ran inside and told me of this as I was leaving work!  The "inverted rainbow" feature at the top is the circumzenithal arc, so named because, if it were an exceedingly rare full circle, it would enclose the … [Read more...]

Sunset Light, Montana Moon

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Storm-observing days don't necessarily end after the storms, or in the day.   We soaked in the sweet-earth aroma of rain-soaked dryland prairie, the last diurnal birds singing their roosting songs, as fresh, cool breezes carried the scent of rejuvenation across the landscape.   Twilight remnants of sunset light cast aglow the high clouds trailing the storms, punctuated by fading golden hues of the … [Read more...]

Western Light: Glasgow, Montana

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As my late friend Jim Leonard was fond of saying, this storm meant "serious business now".  Functioning as "tail-end Charlie" for a line of severe storms, the supercell wielding this wild sky was roaring eastward at over 60 mph, permitting us only few very brief photo stops over a 70-mile stretch west of town.  We arrived at a friend's house in Glasgow with three minutes to spare, before measured … [Read more...]