WX Small Talk: Sky Watchin'

When I was little, I would always have my eyes to the sky when I was outside. Maybe I was just curious about the things that were going on up there. Or more likely, it was the fact that I found most of what amazed me up there. But whatever the reason, I always had my attention to the sky. Just like every other kid, I would pick out shapes in the cumulus clouds on warm spring days. I also enjoyed seeing the tall cumulonimbus clouds of a summertime thunderstorm. As the years went on, I really became more fascinated with what was going on up there in the big, blue sky above our heads. My sky watching led to passion, which eventually led to more sky watching.

As I grew older and began to learn more about clouds and all the neat varieties out there, I began to have favorites. (Yes, I know it's not right to have favorites, but I do.) To this day, I still love all the unique clouds such as: Mammatus, Shelf Clouds, Roll Clouds and Wave Clouds; just to name a few. But, I also really like some of the simple clouds as well, including: Cirrus, Cumulus, Cirrocumulus and Cumulonimbus. I really enjoy when some of the mid-level clouds form at sunrise or sunset, they always make for a great picture like the one below.

More recently, I have become interested in time-lapse video. I love how time-lapse can show how clouds move in different directions depending on the height of the cloud base, and the different directions of the winds aloft. I also enjoy seeing a time-lapse of a good thunderstorm with its cumulonimbus clouds that appear boil up. Sci-tip: Clouds do not boil, rather the opposite happens. The water vapor is rising, cooling, condensing into water droplets and some freeze into ice crystals, all coming together to form the cloud. But still it's something pretty cool to see that sort of thing happen in a time-lapse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQKCcbixxfg

I know that no matter how old I get, I will always be watching the sky for all the cool things that happen up there. If you or someone you know is into cloud spotting or sky watching there are some resources out there for them. First off, there is the cloud appreciation society. (No, seriously it's a real thing.) https://cloudappreciationsociety.org/ this is the site for the cloud lovers out there. Also, if you have ever wanted to spot and identify clouds yourself there is a chart for that. You can check with your local National Weather Service to see if they have a glossy high quality print that you can have. Or, you can print yourself one right below, by clicking on the image.

Now that you have had an introduction to sky watchin' look out for my monthly sky watchin' blog posts featuring some of your pictures.

#SmallTalk #SkyWatchin39 #Clouds