These special solsticial clouds popped up at last last night to celebrate Admin1’s special day (this year’s poor showing of NLCs is apparently due to increased solar activity), and the celebrations continued today when people from up and down the street gathered for a shindig on the traffic island and the family and Frankie popped round for a meal of stroggers and sultana/almond cake and custard and scored a respectable 11.5 on the GSQ. Admin1 now has 5 new books and 5 types of coffee beans, some air-frying utensils, a too-big t-shirt, a scare owl and some kanalbullen for fika.
Tag: noctilucent
When the Nights Are Blue
Happy birthday twins!
To celebrate, some low-down noctilucent clouds, the first of the year, and 13.397kWh on the solar panels, our third sunniest day ever, by 2 watts, what what!
Admin1 is reading Tragedy on the Branch Line by Edward Marston, which was a considerably cosier train ride than Bullet Train, soon to be a big film. Admin2 is reading Crow Court* by Andy Charman, another crowdfunded debut, not so interesting.
Lighten Our Darkness
A bright blue band low in the sky. Probably the last noctilucents of the season.
Meanwhile, earlier tonight Admin1 looked up at the sky and saw a glorious golden fireball trailing sparks. Make a wish, everybody.
Also on display, by a lucky coincidence, was the International Space Station. Try Heavens Above if you’re interested in spotting the ISS (also excellent for many other events of astronomical interest).
Admin2 is reading Have Mercy on Us All by Fred Vargas,an early Adamsberg book in which we meet many characters in the subsequent novels, and in which Paris is threatened by Vargas’ research subject, bubonic plague. Admin1 is reading, very appropriately, Masked Prey by John Sandford.
First Noctilucents
In the midnight hour a delicate veil appears in the northern sky with Capella shining above. It is by far the earliest day in the year that we’ve spotted this summer phenomenon.
Ice Cream Castles in the Air
Expanding cumulus glimpsed between houses on a day of thunderstorms when 4.8mm of rain fell in a hour and the temperature dropped 10 degrees.
Admin1 is reading Ten-Second Staircase by Christopher Fowler.
There are faint noctilucents in the sky tonight.
Two Fools
Admin1 made these delicious puddings from garden raspberries, strawberries and mint. We felt virtuous cultivating our own desserts.
Admin1 is reading Down Cemetery Road by Mick Herron and Admin2 is reading Joe Country, also by Mick Herron. The northern sky is filled with noctilucent clouds, additionally illuminated by the moon.
Solsticial Noctilucents
The drone soars above another fine crop of noctilucents at 11.30pm; here’s its view:
They were still high in the sky in the midnight hour. Happy Birthday Twins!
First Noctilucent Clouds of the Year
Taken from the drone, just after midnight; ISO400, 1 second exposure.
And here they are from the ground:
Happy Birthday Admin1
A street party on the traffic island to celebrate on yet another hot and sunny day. We saw more noctilucent clouds in the early hours, and there are more tonight.
Admin1 is reading Sympathy for the Devil by William Shaw. Admin2 is reading Don’t Let Go by Michel Bussi, an ingenious mystery set on Reunion and with a plot dependent on the topography and meteorology of that island. We scored 12 on the GWQ!
Blue Clouds of the Night
First noctilucents of the year at 1:30am, after the sunniest day ever: 13.656kWh. Happy birthday of yesterday, twins.
Admin2 is reading After the Crash by Michel Bussi.
Noctilucent Clouds
Our first noctilucent clouds of the year, photographed at 2am this morning.
We scored 9 on the Guardian Weekend quiz.
Clouds of the Night: Noctilucents
We have been watching out for these beautiful clouds every night and tonight at midnight they finally arrived!
Admin1 is reading Slow Bullets by Alastair Reynolds.
Cloud of the Night: Noctilucent
Electric blue noctilucent clouds to the north, at about 12:30am. First sighting this year.