For a meteorologist and sky aficionado, few events are more leasing than a wonderfully colorful sunset packed with fascinating weather elements. Not only did a long-lasting contrail crisscross the scene with its varying thickness and light-shadow effects, but a faint sun pillar developed as well (up and down the middle of the shot). Meanwhile, distant cirrus assumed a brilliant yellowish glow, brought closer in visual terms by my use of a zoom lens. Wait! There’s even more to this image. Note the cloud ripples along the left edge of the more distant segment of the contrail. Those are clouds formed in the uplift part of transverse waves that represent shear instability.
Norman OK (9 Feb 16) Looking WSW
35.1814, -97.44Sunset Cirrus, Contrail and Sun Pillar
For a meteorologist and sky aficionado, few events are more leasing than a wonderfully colorful sunset packed with fascinating weather elements. Not only did a long-lasting contrail crisscross the scene with its varying thickness and light-shadow effects, but a faint sun pillar developed as well (up and down the middle of the shot). Meanwhile, distant cirrus assumed a brilliant yellowish glow, brought closer in visual terms by my use of a zoom lens. Wait! There’s even more to this image. Note the cloud ripples along the left edge of the more distant segment of the contrail. Those are clouds formed in the uplift part of transverse waves that represent shear instability.
Norman OK (9 Feb 16) Looking WSW
35.1814, -97.44