Undulatory Patterns in Clouds Possibly Created by Incoming Weather System
Taken by Helio C. Vital on September 4, 2016 @
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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Details:
As I stared at the western sky shortly after sunset, I was amazed to notice the large number of repetitive patterns distributed across the clouds. Exhibiting a wide range of shapes (wave-like, sawtooth, stair-like), sizes, directions (horizontally biased), intensities, degree of organization and maturity (some still forming, others stable and well shaped and others disrupting), they seemed to be imprinted throughout the Altocumulus undulatus formations that hovered over the western horizon. I then heard that a new weather system was arriving and wondered if the approaching air mass could have encountered resistance from the mountain chains that surround Rio. Such event could then have forced the air mass upwards over the mountains, shooting up gravity pressure waves that could have triggered the creation of a multitude of undulatory features as they rippled throughout the clouds. The first image clearly shows how the air density varies across the cloud as parallel dark lines correspond to denser regions. Several series of undulatory patterns have been identified by yellow arrows in the second image, while others (in the last two images) remain to be pinpointed by readers willing to perform the task. Our previous contribution also shows some of these formations at smaller magnifications: (http://spaceweathergallery.com/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=129149) Details: photos taken with a Canon PowerShot SX60 HS camera in Manual Mode at 21:00 UT, 5x (F5.6, ISO 800, 1/40s) at 21:00 UTC and post-processed for enhanced contrast to highlight features of interest.
Photographer's website:
http://https://www.flickr.com/photos/98669508@N03/
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