The Cloud Kingdom

Is the Sky God's Easel?

Some people say stop and smell the roses. I say stop and feel the clouds. Appreciating clouds isn't so much a matter of active watching. It's meditative. You lose yourself in their majesty. Let their beauty roll over you like a shadow.

Clouds of the Canyon

December. The Canyon was practically deserted. I stood on the Tonto Plateau enjoying perfect silence for possibly the first and only time in my life. I wonder if the womb provides moments of perfect silence. That might be why I had such a blissful feeling when I stopped in my tracks and listened. Curious behavior, listening keenly when there's nothing to hear.
Overhead, stray clouds prowled the sky, moving silently, riding phantom air currents. I contemplated the clouds. In the silence, they were all the more impressive.

Soaring Among the Clouds

An alternative to the in-flight movie.

My favorite moment of a flight is when the plane ascends into the clouds.

Flying above the clouds with mountain peaks poking through isn't bad either.

Glorious Gloom

Rejoice in glorious gloomy clouds, harbingers of bad weather, rouge spoilers of the sky. It seems so ungrateful to whine about what the sky gives us.

Watching Over You

Clouds have a way of humbling us. You climb Mt. Everest. What's towering over you? Sentient clouds living in the rarefied air of your dreams.

Do You Know Clouds?

The Cloud Series - A Slide Show

Rows and flows of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
I've looked at clouds that way

But now they only block the sun
They rain and snow on everyone
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my way
I've looked at clouds from both sides now

From up and down, and still somehow
It's cloud illusions I recall
I really don't know clouds at all
--Joni Mitchell

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Clouds From Space

I bless the rains down in Africa

Cumulonimbus Cloud over Africa
Perhaps the most impressive of cloud formations, cumulonimbus (from the Latin for "pile" and "rain cloud") clouds form due to vigorous convection (rising and overturning) of warm, moist, and unstable air. Surface air is warmed by the Sun-heated ground surface and rises; if sufficient atmospheric moisture is present, water droplets will condense as the air mass encounters cooler air at higher altitudes. The air mass itself also expands and cools as it rises due to decreasing atmospheric pressure, a process known as adiabatic cooling. This type of convection is common in tropical latitudes year-round and during the summer season at higher latitudes.

As water in the rising air mass condenses and changes from a gas to a liquid state, it releases energy to its surroundings, further heating the surrounding air and leading to more convection and rising of the cloud mass to higher altitudes. This leads to the characteristic vertical "towers" associated with cumulonimbus clouds, an excellent example of which is visible in this astronaut photograph. If enough moisture is present to condense and heat the cloud mass through several convective cycles, a tower can rise to altitudes of approximately 10 kilometers at high latitudes and to 20 kilometers in the tropics before encountering a region of the atmosphere known as the tropopause-the boundary between the troposphere and the stratosphere.

The tropopause is characterized by a strong temperature inversion. Beyond the tropopause, the air no longer gets colder as altitude increases. The tropopause halts further upward motion of the cloud mass. The cloud tops flatten and spread into an anvil shape, as illustrated by this astronaut photograph. The photo was taken from a viewpoint that was at an angle from the vertical, rather than looking straight down towards the Earth's surface. The image, taken while the International Space Station was located over western Africa near the Senegal-Mali border, shows a fully formed anvil cloud with numerous smaller cumulonimbus towers rising near it. The high energy levels of these storm systems typically make them hazardous due to associated heavy precipitation, lightning, high wind speeds and possible tornadoes.

Image & caption courtesy of The Gateway to Astronaut Photos, Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center.

Anvil Clouds at Sunset
Image courtesy of the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center.

The Cloud Appreciation Society

This is Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society. His maniacal grin suggests he knows something you don't. If you're a blue-sky worshipper, he does. Clouds are cool. Pretor-Pinney is the author of an essential guide to cloud appreciation (see below). He also launched the irreverent periodical The Idler.

Atmospheric Links

The Cloud Appreciation Society: At The Cloud Appreciation Society we love clouds, we're not ashamed to say it. We've had enough of people moaning about them. Read our manifesto and see how we are fighting the banality of 'blue-sky' thinking.
The Idler: The Idler is a bi-annual, book-shaped magazine that campaigns against the work ethic.
Cloud Guide: Get the lowdown on types of clouds.

We Welcome Your Comments

Add your own brilliant thoughts about clouds.

I hope you weren't expecting a treatise. I only wanted to remind people of the beauty of everyday life. Just look up.

I hear people complain about clouds. Clouds spoil an otherwise perfect blue sky, they say. For example, a weathercaster's typical comment is "As soon as those clouds burn off it will be a beautiful day." This is my answer.

Lensmaster

Shelly wrote

I must say you come to mind often as I look at clouds. I've always appreciated them and given a little whispered, "than you Father", at times--don't need to whisper to God, so I know that's silly. The Cloud Kingdom has enhanced my appreciation and I sneak back here now and then, just for the pleasure of it.

Posted June 12, 2009

Lensmaster

Tipi wrote...

Hi, how are you today Zack? - I was trying to reply to my Mom's comments but Squidoo wouldn't let me, I kept going back to the top on the lens, which was nice to scroll down a couple more times. I always enjoy my visit here with you.

Wishing you a wonderful summer!

Posted May 31, 2009

Lensmaster

Tipi's Mom wrote

I have always enjoyed clouds, so the girls do come by their love of your Cloud Kingdom honestly. I watched your slide show and had to replay it two more times and enjoyed your comments. You use the word "majestic" and so have I as I see clouds to be the handiwork of God for our enjoyment. Shelly tells me that I now must visit your "The Now Defunct Museum". Thank you and may God bless you! You are a wonderful writer, this was so fun!

Posted May 11, 2009

Lensmaster

RufusQuail wrote...

in reply to Shelly I wish I could take credit Shelly. "I bless the rains down in Africa" is from a song by the band Toto. Thanks everyone for your kind words.

Posted May 04, 2009

Lensmaster

Shelly wrote

Ahhhhhhhhh, clouds.................the sky is an ever changing easel, we never know what the next delight will be.

Posted March 23, 2009

Scatter Some Stars!

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Bonus Material: Cloud Merchandise!

Royalties Donated to Squidoo Charity Fund

I hope this lens has made you so happy about clouds that you can't resist a shopping spree on Amazon or CafePress. Here are some tastefully selected items to satisfy your cloud cravings.