NASA Maps Night-shining Clouds

[mickw]

A NASA satellite has created a new map of so-called "night-shining clouds," which form at high altitudes on Earth and glow even after the sun sets.

These mysterious clouds, also called noctilucent clouds or Polar Mesospheric Clouds (PMCs), appear about 50 miles (80 km) above Earth's surface during the summer of each hemisphere — from late May through late August in the north, and from late November to late February in the south.

NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) satellite has captured five complete polar seasons of noctilucent cloud coverage, showing that they can quickly form and disperse, and that they are highly dependent on weather systems.

More:   http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/091218-nasa-noctilucent-cloud-aim.html

Another one from ISS

A view of noctilucent clouds from ISS

If only I knew how to abbreviate that  

(Your wish... -- Rick)