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APOD: Iridescent Clouds over Thamserku (2014 Jul 08)

Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 4:05 am
by APOD Robot
Image Iridescent Clouds over Thamserku

Explanation: Why would a cloud appear to be different colors? A relatively rare phenomenon known as iridescent clouds can show unusual colors vividly or a whole spectrum of colors simultaneously. These clouds are formed of small water droplets of nearly uniform size. When the Sun is in the right position and mostly hidden by thick clouds, these thinner clouds significantly diffract sunlight in a nearly coherent manner, with different colors being deflected by different amounts. Therefore, different colors will come to the observer from slightly different directions. Many clouds start with uniform regions that could show iridescence but quickly become too thick, too mixed, or too far from the Sun to exhibit striking colors. The above iridescent cloud was photographed in 2009 from the Himalayan Mountains in Nepal, behind the 6,600-meter peak named Thamserku.

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Re: APOD: Iridescent Clouds over Thamserku (2014 Jul 08)

Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 5:22 am
by Boomer12k
It is really neat....the "rumpled" areas of the clouds, look like a reflection of the mountains....

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Re: APOD: Iridescent Clouds over Thamserku (2014 Jul 08)

Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 7:47 am
by revloren
It is pretty clear that the clouds are being affected by the mountain, specifically as the air passes over the peak creating eddies in a phenomenon known as mountain rotor.

Re: APOD: Iridescent Clouds over Thamserku (2014 Jul 08)

Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2014 7:38 pm
by starsurfer
I want to stand on top of that mountain with my future soulmate!!!