View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Ross Stone captured this image in California on July 31, 2024. Ross wrote: “When I saw this gigantic cumulonimbus cloud I had to pull off to the side of the road and take out my camera. I absolutely love the summertime clouds.” Thank you, Ross! Learn about the 3rd Cloud Appreciation Day below and how you can participate.
Happy Cloud Appreciation Day!
September 13, 2024, is Cloud Appreciation Day. The international online event is organized by the Cloud Appreciation Society, which has more than 60,000 members in 120 countries. Their Memory Cloud Atlas website goes live today, Friday September 13, at one minute after midnight (your local time). It’s a place where anyone around the world can upload an image of their sky on Cloud Appreciation Day, locate themselves on a map and share what they feel about the sky and the clouds.
According to the Cloud Appreciation Society:
Now in its third year, Cloud Appreciation Day is an internationally recognised day when people around the world are encouraged to spend a few moments with their heads in the clouds appreciating the beauty of the sky. Cloud Appreciation Day is on Friday September 13th, 2024, when anyone anywhere can take a photo of their sky and submit it for free to our Memory Cloud Atlas.
Last year thousands of images were uploaded to the 2023 atlas and can be viewed here. Also, the images uploaded in 2022 can be viewed here.
Enjoy some beautiful clouds from our own EarthSky Community Photos below, and also read a book review of Gavin Pretor-Pinney’s book “A Cloud a Day” in our column Media we love.
Cloud gallery from EarthSky Community members
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Sally Mesarosh in Mesa, Arizona, captured this photo on September 13, 2024, and wrote: “This photo was taken during a very intense monsoon storm in Mesa, Arizona. Lightning continually flashed behind clouds.” Thank you, Sally!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Alexander Krivenyshev captured mammatus clouds during a storm over New York on August 4, 2024. Thank you, Alexander.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Jean-Baptiste Feldmann in Gleizé, France, captured these noctilucent – or night-shining – clouds on July 13, 2024. Jean-Baptiste wrote: “Impressive festival of noctilucent clouds a little before 5 in the morning, while I was finishing my planetary observations with the telescope. I had never seen noctilucent with such intensity before. A real treat!” Thank you, Jean-Baptiste!
More cloud gallery from EarthSky Community members
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Lina Tomlin in Texarkana, Texas, caught these mammatus clouds on April 29, 2024. Lina wrote: “Stepped outside and my jaw dropped. I loved watching this massive storm cell roll by. I saw more “bubble” clouds appear and as the sun went down they lit up. I’ve never been this close to clouds like that. Thrilling!” Thank you, Lina!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Osama Fathi in Giza, Egypt, captured this image on February 2, 2023, of the crescent moon, Jupiter and Venus peaking through the clouds above the Great Pyramid of Giza. Osama named this photo “Cosmic love above the pyramids.” Thank you, Osama!
Additional cloud gallery from EarthSky Community members
Of course, there are star clouds in the Milky Way. View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Mary Ditchie near Santa Margarita, California, captured this image on August 11, 2023. Mary wrote: “The town of Santa Margarita glows on the horizon through some clouds. The night sky was very clear there and the Milky Way showed up brilliantly next to an old oak tree.” Thank you, Mary! How many stars can you see in the night sky? Good luck counting all those!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Noel Bowman in Kent, Washington, captured this photo of noctilucent clouds on June 25, 2023. Noel wrote: “Shot at Lake Meridian after sunset. Fairly wide display as well.” Thank you, Noel!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Patricia Stush in Westwood, New Jersey, captured this image on June 21, 2023. Patricia wrote: “Summer solstice sunset.” Thank you, Patricia! Clouds naturally enhance the beauty of a sunset.
Bottom line: Cloud Appreciation Day is September 13, 2024. Enjoy this gallery of beautiful clouds and share your own with the Cloud Appreciation Society and us!
Kelly Kizer Whitt - EarthSky’s roving nature reporter on YouTube - writes and edits some of the most fascinating stories at EarthSky.org. She's been writing about science, with a focus on astronomy, for decades. She began her career at Astronomy Magazine and made regular contributions to other outlets, including AstronomyToday and the Sierra Club. She has nine published books, including a children's picture book, Solar System Forecast, and a young adult dystopian novel, A Different Sky.
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