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Cirrus uncinus (Mares' Tails) over UMass Amherst
Photo by Sharon Vardatira, 7/18/2025 |
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Cirrus sprites + intortus + cirrocumulus mash-up
Photo by Sharon Vardatira, 7/18/2025 |
The sky was putting on a full performance today -- featuring a spectacular cast of cirrus clouds in all their wispy forms: fibratus, intortus, uncinus (aka the ever-dramatic "mares’ tails").
Even a few contrails joined in -- technically jet exhaust, but once they’re tossed and twisted by the upper winds, they start to pass as cirrus themselves. Nature and machine, blurring at altitude.
Whatever you call them, the skies were doing their thing. And we were watching.
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A sky full of cirrocumulus, contrails, and
blended cirrus fibratus/uncinus
Photo by Sharon Vardatira - 7/18/2025
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The photo to the right shows a sky full of cirrocumulus, contrails, and blended cirrus fibratus/uncinus. Even seasoned cloudspotters sometimes mistake contrails for clouds. So how do we know that the "V-shape" cloudlets in this image are not cirrus clouds, but actually the remnants of a few contrails that have been buffeted by the wind? First, the sharp, clean V-formation suggests two straight-line trails diverging or converging, which is much more typical of aircraft paths than of natural atmospheric motion. Second, cirrus clouds rarely form in such distinct intersecting paths unless guided by upper-level wind shear or merging cloud bands, and even then, they tend to curve more gently. The lines in this image are more deliberate. And, finally, supporting evidence in the image: There are other wisps and trails in that photo that also resemble contrails, suggesting it was a high-traffic day aloft, with plenty of jet-made features blending into the natural cirrus field.
#HeadInTheCloudsAmherst #CirrusFibratus #CirrusUncinus #CirrusIntortus #Cloudspotting #NotTooSeriousButVeryReal
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