posted Monday, 02 July 2012, 21:17 (+0800), by Martin
On Saturday evening, I was in South Fremantle with a group of fellow photographers,
with the intention of doing some
steel wool spinning
once it got dark enough.
We saw an interesting cloud formation, which some claim was caused by a meteor
landing in the ocean.
Before sunset, some of us noticed what looked like a contrail just above the horizon. A contrail is long thin artificial cloud caused by condensation or vapour from aircraft engines. In Perth, we rarely see contrails in the sky, as aeroplanes do not normally fly at a high enough altitude over Perth to cause contrails (most aeroplanes flying over Perth are low, either landing or taking off, as Perth is a pretty remote city).
What we saw on Saturday night initially looked just like a normal contrail, starting below the horizon, and finishing abruptly a short distance above the horizon.
Once the sun disappeared below the horizon, just to the right of the contrail, the light of the setting sun lit up this cloud, as shown in the photo below.
We weren't the only ones to see this interesting cloud formation. On the following Monday (today), I noticed numerous news articles on the internet, claiming the streak was caused by a meteor hitting the ocean.
Many of the news articles appear to focus on the fact that it was a "fiery trail". However, before the sun set below the horizon, it looked just like a normal white contrail, albeit with a somewhat abrupt ending. Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the cloud before the sunset.
This fiery streak was not caused by a meteor. It was just a contrail from a passing aeroplane.
Due to the location of this cloud, the setting sun caused the cloud to turn bright red and yellow, as shown in the photo below.
At least one news source claimed the cloud took about 20 minutes to dissipate, but it took quite a bit longer than that. The first photo in this post was taken at 5:25pm, and the last at 5:46pm. Remnants of the cloud are also still visible in another photo I took at 6:04pm.
As far as I can recall, we noticed the cloud in the sky sometime before 5pm.
Due to the location of the cloud in the sky, it caused an interesting "shadow" to be cast across the entire sky, and this is particularly obvious in the photo below.
Before sunset, some of us noticed what looked like a contrail just above the horizon. A contrail is long thin artificial cloud caused by condensation or vapour from aircraft engines. In Perth, we rarely see contrails in the sky, as aeroplanes do not normally fly at a high enough altitude over Perth to cause contrails (most aeroplanes flying over Perth are low, either landing or taking off, as Perth is a pretty remote city).
What we saw on Saturday night initially looked just like a normal contrail, starting below the horizon, and finishing abruptly a short distance above the horizon.
Once the sun disappeared below the horizon, just to the right of the contrail, the light of the setting sun lit up this cloud, as shown in the photo below.
a meteor? I don't think so
South Fremantle, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 10-22mm @22mm, 1/80 sec, f/9, ISO400
Canon EOS 50D, 10-22mm @22mm, 1/80 sec, f/9, ISO400
We weren't the only ones to see this interesting cloud formation. On the following Monday (today), I noticed numerous news articles on the internet, claiming the streak was caused by a meteor hitting the ocean.
Many of the news articles appear to focus on the fact that it was a "fiery trail". However, before the sun set below the horizon, it looked just like a normal white contrail, albeit with a somewhat abrupt ending. Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the cloud before the sunset.
This fiery streak was not caused by a meteor. It was just a contrail from a passing aeroplane.
Due to the location of this cloud, the setting sun caused the cloud to turn bright red and yellow, as shown in the photo below.
fiery colours
South Fremantle, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 35mm f/2 @35mm, 1/160 sec, f/9, ISO400
Canon EOS 50D, 35mm f/2 @35mm, 1/160 sec, f/9, ISO400
At least one news source claimed the cloud took about 20 minutes to dissipate, but it took quite a bit longer than that. The first photo in this post was taken at 5:25pm, and the last at 5:46pm. Remnants of the cloud are also still visible in another photo I took at 6:04pm.
As far as I can recall, we noticed the cloud in the sky sometime before 5pm.
after sunset
South Fremantle, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 35mm f/2 @35mm, 1/13 sec, f/9, ISO100
Canon EOS 50D, 35mm f/2 @35mm, 1/13 sec, f/9, ISO100
Due to the location of the cloud in the sky, it caused an interesting "shadow" to be cast across the entire sky, and this is particularly obvious in the photo below.
long shadow in the sky
South Fremantle, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 10-22mm @10mm, 10 sec, f/20, ISO100
Canon EOS 50D, 10-22mm @10mm, 10 sec, f/20, ISO100
