Nacreous Clouds
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Nacreous Clouds by Michael Jagger as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
Nacreous Clouds
Image: © Michael Jagger Taken: 16 Feb 1996
Sometimes also called Mother of Pearl Clouds. Nacreous clouds resemble pale cirrus or lenticular altocumulus and show very marked irisation, the most brilliant colours occurring when the sun is just below the horizon (before dawn or after sunset). They can still be distinguished up to about two hours after sunset as thin grey clouds standing out against the starry sky. In moonlight they may be visible throughout the night. These clouds occur at an altitude between 21 and 30 km and require a temperature approaching -90°C to form. Source: Meteorological Office
Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
Image Location
Latitude
53.94167
Longitude
-1.113797