Strange Cloud Formations

Got talking about strange cloud formations recently, having been sent this link, then remembered these spectacular images from a while back.

I’m not sure about the first link, but the second are definately mammatus formations. They’re formed by cold, saturated air dropping back down from a cloud. We’re not used to seeing clouds without flat bottoms, and this, added with some lighting from the side at sunset, it combined to produce such spectacular effects.

A quick image search for mammatus brings in some more examples of varying extremes.

The Sound of Enceladus

Cassini is still busily collecting data around Saturn; lots of pictures and this audio snippet, an audible representation of electro-magnetic field measurements taken during a flyby of Enceladus.

There are plenty more examples on the University of Iowa “Space Audio” page. Of particular note is this “AKR” recording from the Earth’s magnetosphere, which sounds rather like the jungle at night.

Amateur Mapping in the Guardian

Interesting to see how the press is picking up the idea of free maps. This article in the Guardian is the latest I’ve seen, following the New Scientist mention a few weeks back. Its good to see the issues of mapping copyrights being aired in the national press like this.

US Air Traffic

Found this fascinating video of US air traffic over a day. I can’t imagine how much fuel that lot burnt up over the course of the animation.

Found via LawGeek.

Meloe Proscarabaeus

Found this unusual beetle:

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A little research revealed that it is an oil beetle, genus Meloe. I’m not too sure on the species, but the Proscarabaeus is most common in the UK and blue-black, so I’ll plump for that one. Though, according to my invaluable book, it’s a big one.

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More Conjoined Grapes

A quick search on Google revealed that my conjoined grapes are by no means unique.

There’s two more examples here along with some other foodal anomalies.

Space Research and Pretty Pictures

I know there’s more to space research than pretty pictures, but there do seem to be a lot of them about at the minute. ESA’s Mars Express has snapped this little lot of the northern pole’s ice cap (and a other interesting features.)

Then there’s Cassini, which is still out there, producing some stunning pictures. There’s the Hubble telescope too, which looks like it might last a bit longer still, after a little jiggery-pokery.