Noctilucent Cloud Photo Gallery -- Summer 2008: Page 1

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Summer 2008

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Observing tips: Look west 30 to 60 minutes after sunset when the Sun has dipped 6^o to 16^o below the horizon. If you see luminous blue-white tendrils spreading across the sky, you've probably spotted a noctilucent cloud. Although noctilucent clouds appear most often at arctic latitudes, they have been sighted in recent years as far south as Colorado, Utah and Virginia. NLCs are seasonal, appearing most often in late spring and summer. In the northern hemisphere, the best time to look would be between mid-May and the end of August. See also 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Photographer, Location	Images	Comments
Brian Whittaker, flying 35,000 feet over the very remote northern end of Quebec, Canada. Jun. 11, 2008	#1, more	I was excited to see my first Noctilucent Clouds of the season on June 11th! This picture shows the view looking north toward Baffin Island into the midnight twilight. It was a bright display that impressed me and all who saw it.
Daniel Robinson, Wrightington, W Lancashire, England Jun. 13, 2008	#1, #2, #3, #4, more	Observed and captured my first NLC display of the season on Thursday night (June 12/13). First spotted at 2.15BST and lasted until dawn. Brightest and most extensive display I've seen so early in the season. Photo details: Canon EOS 400D
John C McConnell, Maghaberry, Northern Ireland. Jun. 13, 2008	#1, #2, #3, #4	This was my first really spectacular display of the season. Every form was visible including some which I've never seen before. At one stage the display reached well above the altitude of Capella. Photo details: Canon 400D, ISO800, 6-8 seconds with an 18-55mm lens mostly working at f4.5.
Martin Mc Kenna, Maghera, Co. Derry, Northern Ireland Jun. 13, 2008	#1, #2, #3, #4, more	Tonight the clouds broke and I was amazed to see a spectacular NLC display stretching from the NW to NE and reaching higher than golden Capella. I didn't want my street lights to spoil my images so I jogged out to the countryside and set my camera up in a nice field. I was so excited that I only just noticed that I was wearing a t-shirt. The NLC display was breathtaking!, consisting of glowing blue and white structures which were beyond description. They not only looked beautiful but moved rapidly even with the naked eye!. I managed to get these images before the clouds arrived. Fujifilm S6500 6.3MP at ISO100 6-8 sec exp.
Peter Paul Hattinga Verschure, Deventer, the Netherlands Jun. 13, 2008	#1, more	A beautiful display of noctilucent clouds above dark Stratocumulus patches, from 00.55 UTC until disappearing in twilight at 02.20 UTC.

Northern Lights Photo Gallery: A solar wind stream hit Earth on May 20th causing a mild geomagnetic storm and Northern Lights around the Arctic Circle. The auroras of May 21st were so bright, they were visible in the twilight blue sky above Nunavik, Quebec.

"The sky is blue at 1 o'clock in the morning when I took these pictures," says photographer Sylvain Serre. "At our latitude at this time of year, it is blue all night long--and it's never a dark blue. So, at 1 o'clock in the morning, the sky is bright and I can see only a few stars."

In spite of this extra glare, Serre was able to see the auroras. "I saw them with my unaided eyes. The clouds made it difficult, but the clouds were moving slowly while the northern lights were moving faster." This, plus the green color of the auroras, made it possible to sort things out.