Clouds from space / Rare clouds

[ezsha]

Here are two different article about clouds:

The first is a long but fascinating view of clouds from space, with some descriptions of how they form - including how islands, lakes, and ships affect cloud formation.  (In western NY, we're VERY familiar with lake effect, but it's really neat to see what it looks like from space.)

Weird Clouds Look Even Better From Space
    * By Betsy Mason  |  May 12, 2010  |  7:03 pm  | Categories: Earth Science

Lake effect, western Great Lakes

Island effect, Greenland


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The second has a series of seven unusual formations, taken from earth, but explains how each takes place.

Weird, Rare Clouds and the Physics Behind Them
    * By Betsy Mason  |  September 29, 2009  |  8:06 pm  |  Categories: Environment

Mammatus clouds

Kelvin-Helmholz waves

[dbishop]

Another rare type of cloud is the noctiluminescent cloud.  These are very high clouds that actually shine the way a satellite shines at night when it is going overhead.   The light of the sun is still reflecting off the cloud, even though the sun is over the horizon.

Here is an observation from a few years ago in this area.
http://www.space.com/spacewatch/mystery_cloud_040901.html
They are more common out west.