The one thing this lockdown has taught me is to appreciate nature! Every evening after work, I go on the terrace to get a breath of fresh air. And I catch myself always looking at the sky—the purple haze clouds, the sunsets, it’s all so serene. Lately, I’ve also started noticing the different types of cloud formations on different weather days. And it made me curious about what the rarest types of clouds actually look like. A quick google search showed me clouds I have never seen before and my mind was blown! So, adding them to the list below so your mind can be blown too. Scroll down to check ’em all out!
1. Mammatus Clouds
These pouch-like clouds look like animated clouds, no? Their name mammatus is actually derived from the Latin word mamma, which actually means ‘breast’ or ‘udder’. The mammatus clouds can extend over hundreds of miles. Wish I could witness these clouds in real life someday! These clouds are actually an indicator that the worst weather has passed.
2. Asperitas
The asperitas clouds are the first new type of cloud to be recognised in the past 50 years. In June 2015, the name of the clouds was officially accepted into the International Cloud Atlas of the World Meteorological Organisation. It is yet to be discovered by the scientists how these clouds are formed.
3. Fallstreak Holes
Fallstreak hole clouds are also called hole-punch clouds, because that’s exactly what they look like—a hole punched in a cloud. These clouds look unarguably best during sunsets because the sun rays look like fiery wounds in the sky! they can grow as huge as 50 km in just an hour. And a lot of times, they are also mistaken for UFOs.
4. Supercell Storm Cloud
Supercell storm clouds are a type of thunderstorm. And their destructive powers are only second to hurricanes! These clouds can produce hailstones that are the size of a tennis ball also. Another fun fact about the supercell storm clouds is that all tornadoes are associated with them, however not all supercells produce tornadoes.
5. Nacreous
The name nacreous is derived from the French word nacré which means ‘mother of pearl’. Nacreous clouds may look extremely beautiful but they are equally dangerous. Being a type of polar stratospheric cloud, they actually play a vital role in the ozone layer’s chemical destruction.
Which one of these rare clouds did you find the most dramatic? Let us know in the comments below!
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