Unusual pearl-colored ice clouds have appeared over the Ukrainian scientific station Akademik Vernadsky in Antarctica. This is reported by the National Antarctic Science Center on Facebook.
These clouds are composed of ice crystals, are observed in the polar regions and form above most clouds – in the dry stratosphere, not in the humid troposphere, the polar explorers explained.
Scientists note that nacreous clouds are quite rare. In Antarctica, they appear mainly in winter – when in the lower layers of the stratosphere (15-27 km) the temperature drops to anomalous values (about -85 ° C).
The appearance of nacreous clouds is reportedly associated with “mountain waves” – when a stream of air in the troposphere hits a mountain ridge, rises and then “falls” over the mountains. In the polar regions, the height of the troposphere is no more than 7-8 km, so the tip of such a “wave” falls into the stratosphere, which contributes to the formation of nacreous clouds. They can also form due to strong tropospheric cyclones.
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Polar explorers write that nacreous clouds are very thin, they are practically invisible during the day. However, in the evening, when the sun drops a few degrees below the horizon, ice crystals are illuminated in such a way that an iridescent effect is obtained – it gives the clouds an unusual color.
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