Waves in the Sky

January 08, 2007

Clouds5

Provided by: Mark Taylor
Summary authors & editors: Mark Taylor

'Waves in the Sky' was the thought when this scene was spotted early on the morning of the 6th of October (2006) from Worcester, England. These wave forms are referred to as Kelvin Helmoltz clouds. They typically occur when two parallel layers of air are moving at different speeds and in opposite directions (wind shear). The upper layer of air usually moves faster than the lower layer because there is less friction. In order for us to see this shear layer, there must be enough water vapor present for clouds to form. On this morning there was, and the resulting cloud shapes conjured up memories of summer at the shore.

Related Links: