The seasonal cloud season is over us! This is what you need to know when to catch the spectral phenomenon as we advance in the main visualization season of the summer months.
Astronomers and clouds They are natural enemies, greatly due to the habit of the letter of obscuring the sky beyond with dense veils of condensed water vapor.
An exception to this rule is the appearance of Noctilucent clouds – delicate ice cream strands that seem to shine a spectral blue in The sunThe light reflected in the hours after the Sunset and the predated. These rare clouds are formed approximately 50 miles (80 kilometers) above Land In the mesosphere, a cold layer of the atmosphere located about 43 miles (70 km) above where ordinary clouds are formed.
When to see the clouds ‘Night Brilling’
The best time to see nightly clouds is on clear nights between the end of May and mid -August, about 90 to 120 minutes After sunset or before dawn. The sightings are the most common duration of June and July.
It is more likely that Cikos observers detect noctilucent clouds in the latitudes of the northern summer duration in the northern hemisphere. Around this time, the sun never immerses itself well below the horizon, letting it be well placed to illuminate the ice cream at great altitude, as the night is established. Night clouds appear more commonly between 45 and 80 degrees north of Ecuador, a range that includes some of the northernmost states of the United States, including North Dakota, Montana and Washington.
In recent decades, this captivating phenomenon has appeared in lower latitudes than ever. The reasons for this change have been attributed to a combination of sources, ranging from Climate change To increase the cadence of rocket launches, according to the Royal Museums Greenwich.
Clouds born or cosmic visitors
The noctilucent clouds are formed when the warm and rich air in moisture rises in the duration of the atmosphere in the summer months, according to the Stargazing site Earthsky.com. As the air rises to the atmosphere of weight loss, it expands and gradually cools, until it is cold enough for ice crystals to form around the small dust they participate in drift to large altitudes.
Some of these parts of the dust can be the remains of the innumerable small Meteorites That collide with Earth’s environment In a daily basic, while others were born or volcanic eruptions or contamination before being taken to the atmosphere.
The high altitude of noctilucent clouds allows them to reflect sunlight after it has been under the horizon, giving them an almost ethereal shine against the dark sky. Its frozen composition also gives them a relatively high albedo compared to ordinary clouds, which means that they reflect a major relationship or light light.
Editor’s note: If you take an image of noctilucent clouds and want to share it with the readers of Space.com, send your photos, comments and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
