A rare and stunning wave-like cloud over part of Britain marks a sighting of the first new cloud type to be officially recognised in more than half a century. 'This cloud has always appeared – no one is suggesting that it is new to the sky – but we have been able to identify it thanks to our international network of sky-aware members around the world, brought together by the powers of the interweb' the Cloud Appreciation Society said. What kind of clouds are these? The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. The asperitas is the first addition to the International Cloud Atlas in half a century <img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://i.imwx.com/web/UndulatusAsperatus320x180.gif" srcset="https://i.imwx.com/web/UndulatusAsperatus320x180.gif 400w, https://i.imwx.com/web/UndulatusAsperatus320x180.gif 800w" >This animation of undulatus asperatus was uploaded to Imgur and is a gif of the video taken by Alex Schueth. The ominous-looking clouds have been particularly common in the Plains states of the United States, often during the morning or midday hours following convective thunderstorm activity. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
This described a series of sightings of the cloud, which were interpreted as being associated with the propagation of gravity waves through a pre-existing cloud layer. [7] We recognize our responsibility to use data and technology for good.
'These wave-like structures form on the underside of the cloud to makes it look like a rough sea surface when viewed from below,' the Met Office says.
Asperitas clouds do have a swirling and undulating feel to them, but it’s important to note that undulatus clouds have more predictable, uniform undulations. [5] In March 2009, Chad Hedstroom took a picture of asperatus clouds from his car near Greenville Ave in Dallas, Texas. The Cloud Appreciation Society petitioned the WMO, asking for a new classification for the cloud since "photographs of this cloud formation had been sent in by Society members over the years, and we’d never known quite how to classify them since we felt that they didn’t easily fit into the existing cloud terms.". Surface temperatures of the nearby Pacific Ocean remain chilly year round - in the mid-50s. On October 28, 2013, an Asperitas cloud layer formed over Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Pretor-Pinney gave an invited presentation at the WMO in Geneva for the launch of the revised Cloud Atlas, on World Meteorological Day 2017.
The seldom-seen clouds are named after the Latin for 'roughness' because of their resemblance to a rough sea. Asperitas (formerly known as Undulatus asperatus) is a cloud formation first popularized and proposed as a type of cloud in 2009 by Gavin Pretor-Pinney of the Cloud Appreciation Society. Take control of your data: © Copyright TWC Product and Technology LLC 2014, 2020. Last year, they were officially recognised for the first time by the World Meteorological Organisation, at the WMO's 17th Congress.
An Update on the Asperatus Cloud. This particular time-lapse of undulatus asperatus clouds was created by animating still frames of a video taken by storm chaser Alex Schueth, who recorded the clouds … By Swns and Abigail Beall For Mailonline 'The newest cloud type, asperitas formations are rare and resemble rippling ocean waves in the sky.'. Formally recognized as a distinct cloud type only last year, Asperitas clouds can be stunning in appearance, unusual in occurrence, and are relatively unstudied.
Mountaineer instructor Patrick Hickie captured the spectacular 'asperitas' formation over Ogwen Valley in Snowdonia. This animation of undulatus asperatus was uploaded to Imgur and is a gif of the video taken by Alex Schueth. Sightings are normally linked to convective thunderstorms as the clouds need unstable conditions to form.
The name translates approximately as "roughness". The newest cloud type, asperitas formations are rare and resemble rippling ocean waves in the sky.
[9], Since 2006, many similar cloud formations have been contributed to the gallery, and in 2009 Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of The Cloud Appreciation Society, began working with the Royal Meteorological Society to promote the cloud type as an entirely new type in and of itself.[3]. Although their cause is presently unknown, such unusual atmospheric structures, as menacing as they might seem, do not appear to be harbingers of meteorological doom. 17:33 22 Nov 2016, updated 17:33 22 Nov 2016. Regardless of official cloud status or not, undulatus asperatus sitings are strikingly visual reminders that the atmosphere is an ocean of gas, complete with cloud waves crashing high above. [5] On July 23, 2013, Janet Salsman photographed them along the South Shore of Nova Scotia, Canada.
The photo was posted by NASA as the Astronomy Picture of the Day and shows great detail, partly because sunlight illuminates the undulating clouds from the side. The WMO considered the request and has yet to confirm the official classification of undulatus asperatus or determine whether the item should enter the International Cloud Atlas.
The Short Answer: Clouds are created when water vapor, an invisible gas, turns into liquid water droplets. The base of the clouds are usually between 0.62 to 1.86 miles (1 to 3km) high and are not known to produce rain, but they may cause rain clouds to form. In contrast, the California landmass is often much warmer. How Do Clouds Form? Storm Angus brought hurricane force winds to Britain yesterday - causing flooding and power cuts to thousands of homes. "Asperatus: gathering storm to force new cloud name", "New Cloud Type Discovered: 'Undulus Asperatus, "Iowa Woman's Photo Sparks Push for New Cloud Type", https://plus.google.com/108868884822043573742/posts/gBbvhByxGW8, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz7BgxrVmiQ, "APOD: 2013 February 27 - Asperatus Clouds Over New Zealand", "Asperitas – a newly identified cloud supplementary feature", Nitric acid and water polar stratospheric clouds, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Asperitas_(cloud)&oldid=958438230, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Altocumulus or Stratocumulus depending on height, as Asperitas is thought to be a cumuliform structure, Below 2,000 (or higher with altocumulus) m, This page was last edited on 23 May 2020, at 20:22.
The 2017 edition of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) 's International Cloud Atlas included asperitas as a supplementary feature. [2], On June 20, 2006 Jane Wiggins took a picture of asperatus clouds from the window of a downtown office building in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Cloud Appreciation Society has campaigned since 2006 for asperitas clouds to be labelled as a separate type after other sightings around the world. These wave-like structures form on the underside of the cloud to makes it look like a rough sea surface when viewed from below.
Asperitas (formerly referred to as Undulatus Asperitas) is a distinctive, but relatively rare cloud formation that takes the appearance of rippling waves. A rare and stunning wave-like cloud over part of Britain marks a sighting of the first new cloud type to be officially recognised in more than half a century.
This particular time-lapse of undulatus asperatus clouds was created by animating still frames of a video taken by storm chaser Alex Schueth, who recorded the clouds over Lincoln, Nebraska, on July 7, 2014.
These clouds are often coined undulatus asperitas, but you should note that technically speaking, the asperitas cloud feature shouldn’t always be classified alongside the undulatus cloud variety. [4][3], Margaret LeMone, a cloud expert with the National Center for Atmospheric Research has taken photos of asperatus clouds for 30 years, and considers it in her own words, a new cloud type.
(NASA/Windows on Earth). 'When it is added to the naming system in 2017, asperitas will be the first new type of cloud since 1953.'. These water droplets form on tiny particles, like dust, that are floating in the air. [2] The name translates approximately as "roughness".
While they haven't been formally recognized yet by the World Meteorological Organized (WMO), undulatus asperatus clouds are taking the world by storm. Asperitas (formerly known as Undulatus asperatus) is a cloud formation first popularized and proposed as a type of cloud in 2009 by Gavin Pretor-Pinney of the Cloud Appreciation Society.Added to the International Cloud Atlas as a supplementary feature in March 2017, it is the first cloud formation added since cirrus intortus in 1951. Mr Hickie saw the unusual clouds swirling very slowly during a 2,460 foot (750 metre) climb in the mountains and grabbed his phone. Undulatus asperatus, which means "agitated waves," was originally submitted to the WMO in 2009 by the Cloud Appreciation Society. Onshore flow sets up, and as air moves over the Pacific toward land, water vapor within it cools, condenses, and forms a dense deck of fog.