High-Altitude Clouds

Explore the scientific classification and physics of every major types of lightning, from standard ground strikes to rare high-altitude discharges.

Learn how do 22 degree halos form when sunlight refracts through hexagonal ice prisms in cirrus clouds. Explore the science behind this optical effect.

Polar stratospheric clouds form in extreme cold below -78°C and influence ozone depletion. Learn how these nacreous clouds develop and glow in the sky.

How do cirrus clouds form in the upper troposphere? Learn how the deposition process and atmospheric water vapour create high-altitude ice crystals.

Learn how a circumhorizontal arc forms when sunlight refracts through plate-shaped ice crystals in cirrus clouds, and where Australian skywatchers are.

A 22-degree solar halo forms when light refracts through hexagonal ice crystals in high clouds. Spot these colourful rings across Australian skies.

Learn how cirrocumulus clouds form and what a mackerel sky means for local weather. See how these high-altitude ice crystals signal atmospheric change.

Learn how cirrus clouds form from ice crystals and help predict weather shifts in Australia. See why these wispy cloud formations matter for aviation.