Massive New Mexico Wildfire Spawns 7.5 Mile Fire Cloud
A massive, early season wildfire that continues to burn in northern New Mexico generated a pyrocumulonimbus cloud. The Calf Canyon-Hermits Peak fire continued to rage…
Clouds
Cloud Party in the Pacific: Flower-Shaped Actinoform and Spiraling Von Kármán Vortices
Two eye-catching cloud types—flower-shaped actinoform and spiraling von Kármán vortices—popped up off the coast of Chile in March. Some of the first features that scientists…
Science Made Simple: What Are Clouds and Aerosols?
Clouds are an essential part of the Earth’s climate. Clouds block the sun and shade the ground, cooling the planet’s surface and the atmosphere. They…
Hydraulic Jump Drives Stratospheric Hydration Above Intense Supercell Thunderstorms
Scientists have provided new insights into how intense thunderstorms drive the injection of water vapor from the troposphere — the atmospheric layer closest to Earth’s…
Cloudscapes Over Sumatra: Gorgeous Astronaut Photo Captures Thunderheads and Anvil Clouds
Moist ocean air and steady winds pile up thunderheads and anvil clouds around Indonesia. An astronaut onboard the International Space Station shot this panoramic, west-looking…
The Sun and Stars Affect Our Everyday Clouds and, Ultimately, Earth’s Energy Budget
Large Effect of Solar Activity on Earth’s Energy Budget This is the result of a new study by researchers from DTU Space at the Technical…
Massive Flying Laboratory Uncovers Secrets of How Marine Life Influences Cloud Formation
Ocean Life Helps Produce Clouds, but Existing Clouds Keep New Ones at Bay Stand on the ocean’s shore and take a big whiff of the…
Princeton University Researchers: Planting Forests May Cool the Planet More Than Thought
Princeton University researchers found that greater formation of clouds over forested areas suggests that reforestation would likely be more effective at cooling Earth’s atmosphere than…
Satellites Reveal How Forests Increase Clouds and Cool the Climate
Forests are not only key to moderating our climate by sequestering atmospheric carbon, but they also create a cooling effect by increasing low-level clouds. A…
Electric Blue Streaks: High, Dry, and Rare in the Sky
Noctilucent clouds form so high in the atmosphere that they continue to reflect sunlight hours after sunset, creating a spectacular nighttime display. Clouds illuminated during…
Satellite Observations Show Marine Clouds Amplify Global Warming
A new analysis of satellite cloud observations finds that global warming causes low-level clouds over the oceans to decrease, leading to further warming. The work,…
NASA Super Soaker Mission Seeks to Understand Bright Night-Shining Clouds by Creating One
Since the late 1800s, observers have searched the polar skies for elusive, high-flying clouds that shine in the darkness. These polar mesospheric clouds, or PMCs,…
Mysterious Hovering Clouds Spotted Over the Transantarctic Mountains
Smooth, stationary clouds are occasionally reported by the public as sightings of “unidentified flying objects.” But these clouds are not as mysterious as they might…
New Research Provides a Better Understanding of How Cirrus Clouds Form
New research provides insights into how cirrus clouds form, with implications for agriculture, urban development and climate-change predictions. The study shows that trees and plants…
Breathtaking Night-Shining Clouds: Electric Blue Streaks Form High in the Atmosphere
Every summer in the Northern Hemisphere, electric blue streaks form high in the atmosphere. These seasonal clouds typically lurk about 80 kilometers (50 miles) overhead…
Strange Times Meet Strange Clouds: Noctilucent or “Night Shining” Clouds
Strange times meet strange clouds. Noctilucent or ‘night shining’ clouds (NLC) are captured over Knowlton Church in Dorset, UK, by astrophotographer Ollie Taylor in the…
Unusual “Volcano Track” Clouds Investigated
In 2008, atmospheric scientist Santiago Gassó authored a study that highlighted abnormally bright trails of clouds around remote peaks in the South Sandwich Islands. The…
First Arctic Ice-Blue Noctilucent Clouds of the Season Spotted by NASA’s Aim
Ice-blue clouds are drifting high above the Arctic, which means the Northern Hemisphere’s noctilucent cloud season is here. NASA’s Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere…
