Strange Skies

Very, very rarely do we see a strange sky, but this one I captured today and honestly couldn't believe my eyes at first. Taken from our driveway, I saw this bit first.

My Partner said it looks like a searchlight beaming up, but look at the next one, taken minutes later.

Followed soon after with this one.

Followed by one taken from the back garden.

 

How very strange, Mikkel .... it almost looks like a huge searchlight .... was it moving?

 

If it was moving as such, it was only because of the cloud movement as we call it. It was actually the Sun's rays shining.

 

This was an odd sky I saw back in October last year when returning from Tunbridge Wells. There was a huge block of cloud which stopped short of the horizon, with a definite horizontal base and a much lighter sky beneath. There was no rain and it cleared fairly quickly. The quality of the picture is due to the fact that it was taken from a moving car.

 

I just enlarged this and it is incredible. Well done for capturing it.

 

Well captured, they are called sun pillars Mikkel The pillar appears as a feather of light that extends vertically above and/or below the light source.Most sun pillars are seen when the sun is low on the horizon (generally no more than 6 degrees above) or just below it,it is caused throgh reflections off ice crystals in the sky different shaped ice crystals can give you different phenomena they can be shaped as arcs, glories, halos, pillars and sun dogs(sometimes called a circumhorizontal arc).
This is a sun dog taken earlier this year.

 

Thanks for the lovely shot Walnut. You may already know about it, but in case you don't, there's a wonderful website called The Cloud Appreciation Society http://cloudappreciationsociety.org/ with pictures of amazing formations from around the world. There is also a book of the same name.
Chris

 

Thanks for that Chris I have a copy of there inaugural publication, "the cloud spotters guide" strange that britain has 4 times as many members as any other country it must be our obsession with the weather and weather phenomena,dare not join another website but very interesting non the less I took a shot of a sun dog a couple of weeks ago will upload it sometime.

 

I have just added this to My Favourites for a look later. Thank You.

 

I saw some similar tonight, but not as good as yours Wiseoldowl.

 

Nice one Woo.:thumb:

 

mikkel never seen a sky like that before good pics and woo thats a great pic also

 

Lenticular clouds.
I've not seen these very often but spotted them last October in the sky while being driven in sis in law's car near Chipping Sodbury. Couldn't find a safe place to park up and had to grab shots through gaps in hedges
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