#asperatus clouds

Restless Dawn

Heaving swells of a restless sea, Asperatus clouds roll above, their shadowed bellies ignited by the first blush of light...

Pataskala, Ohio. September 7, 2025.

Asperatus clouds looming in the Kentucky sky. ☁️🤯⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Epic photo by Johanna McKinney Cheek.

From Earth Science Picture of the Day; January 8, 2018:

Asperatus Clouds Over the Canary Islands Photographer: Roberto Porto; Summary Authors: Roberto Porto, Jim Foster

Shown above is fantastical sky that looks like it could have been painted by an impressionist artist. I captured this photo in Teide National Park, on the Canary Island of Tenerife (Spain), during the afternoon of November 26, 2017. Referred to as asperatus clouds, it now seems that they form in similar atmospheric conditions that result in mammatus type clouds -- air cooled by the sublimation of ice crystals punching through an existing cloud base. However, with asperatus, strong wind shear at the cloud level causes the clouds to shape into wave-like structures called undulatus. They're not often seen, but when they are, they're always captivating.

Teide National Park, Spain Coordinates: 28.2539, -16.6183

Related Links

Undulatus Asperatus Clouds Over Paris

Roberto's Website

Student Links

Cloud Types

Earth Observatory