the helvetica scenario

Wherever you are, whatever you do, look around you.

[thehelveticascenario]

Sunset. Something that appears to be mammatus clouds, formed by downward motion at the cloud base.

[thehelveticascenario]

After learning about them in several courses at university, i finally saw them myself: KelvinHelmholtz indtability clouds. The wave breaking occurs when the shear becomes large enough, generating instabilities, turbulentce and mixing. The mixng reduces the shear, and the flow once again become laminar.

[theweatherlab]

[disney-princess-in-the-making]

Some unusual cloud types

[weatherfacts]

Virga

These strange jellyfish-looking structures are made from precipitation which never reaches the ground due to evaporation. Virga can form at any cloud layer, but they are typically only composed of water droplets and have a grey appearance at lower levels. At higher altitudes, Virga are made of ice crystals and have a whiter hue. Occasionally, you can find Virga falling into a strong jet of air, causing them to bend at a 90 degree angle.

[holykrampus]

Lenticular clouds over Mt. Fuji.

[weatherandclimate]

Since I’m currently reading about atmospheric circulations and how eddies are formed, I thought I’d share a picture of billow clouds with you guys. Unfortunately, I can’t say I’ve ever seen these in real life, but they are quite beautiful. (This photo is from WebEcoist, where there’s also an article attached.)

An “eddy” is basically just a whirl of air. When an eddy forms on the downwind side of a mountain in an area where wind shear is present (wind shear is when the wind suddenly changes direction or speed), these billow clouds can form. These clouds are the visual that means Kelvin Helmhotlz waves are present. 

Fun stuff, am I right?

[airstyledraconos]

Deciding to study meteorology

Expectation:

Reality:

*Totally worth it, though*

[theweatherlab]

[design-is-fine]

Flammarion engraving, from the book L’atmosphère: météorologie populaire, 1888. Unknown artist. Engraving. Via Wiki.

[athankyou]

isolated rain shower

via theobservantdude on Reddit

[theweatherlab]

[wigmund]

From National Geographic Photo Of The Day; February 21, 2014:

Storm Watch Saranya Chalermchai, National Geographic Your Shot

Hoping to capture some lightning pictures, Your Shot contributor Saranya Chalermchai sat with camera in hand on the 21st floor of a building as a storm passed over Bangkok. “At one point, I saw a little light coming from the clouds, and at that exact moment I pressed the shutter,” she says. “The little [bit of] lightning had already expanded, giving me this amazing shot.”

This photo was submitted to Your Shot. Check out the new and improved website, where you can share photos, take part in assignments, lend your voice to stories, and connect with fellow photographers from around the globe.

[thehelveticascenario]

[alexs-favorite-stuff]

Super cell storm in Texas

[theweatherlab]

[joshbregy-blog]

I got this from divergence-aloft