Explanation: Yes, but how many dark clouds have a multicolored lining? Pictured, behind this darker cloud, is a pileusiridescent cloud, a group of water droplets that have a uniformly similar size and so togetherdiffract different colors of sunlight by different amounts. The above image was taken just after the picturesque sight was noticed by chance by a photographer in Ethiopia. A more detailed picture of the same cloud shows not only many colors, but unusual dark and wavy bands whose origins are thought related to wave disturbances in the cloud.
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 5:16 am
by Ann
Nice cloud! And I really, really like one of the links of today's APOD, the one showing us the more detailed picture of the cloud.
Ann
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 5:44 am
by georgevedwards
It's a UFO!
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 10:56 am
by Indigo_Sunrise
This is an interesting image. I've never seen (or, to be honest, heard of) pileus iridescent clouds. I have heard of - and seen - 'regular' iridescent clouds, and even taken pictures of some. But I had to look up the word 'pileus', just so I knew what it meant, and then I understood the difference! (APOD is fast becoming a great word-of-the-day site, too! ) This link was immensly helpful. And this one I liked because it shows how small one of these can appear next to such a large cumulus cloud.
Maybe I've seen one and not realized it???!!? I've got to start looking more closely!
Wonderful image!
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 12:02 pm
by orin stepanek
A beautiful image worthy of becoming a background.
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 2:24 pm
by neufer
Click to play embedded YouTube video.
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 5:26 pm
by JohnD
Wow! And that is seen in Ethiopia, the fount and origin of the Rastafari culture.
(Although, "Rastafari not a culture, it's a reality." Bob Marley)
It becomes obvious where the rasta hat comes from:
Re: APOD: A Pileus Iridescent Cloud Over Ethiopia (2011 Aug
Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 9:02 pm
by jkbonner
I see a resemblence with the irridecent clouds structure as viewed close up and the structure of the apparent dunes on Titan from the image PIA14500, and both look like a finger print...interesting.