Wednesday, August 02, 2006

Beautiful Clouds


Photographed over Antarctica, the rare nacreous cloud is made up of millions of ice crystals which bend and scatter the sun's rays, creating a pastel rainbow.

Also known as mother of pearl clouds, these formations only occur high in the atmosphere, in some of the coldest temperatures on Earth.

But their ethereal beauty may conceal a dark secret - it is thought that chemical reactions on the surface of the clouds help deplete the ozone layer.

This spectacular picture was taken at sunset in East Antarctica. The clouds' formation is dependent on a combination of extreme weather conditions, including temperatures below minus 80c, and they are visible only at sunrise and sunset. link

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