The world up close: Eyes to the sky

Welcome to the second edition of the world up close, a feature here at We Rep STEM where we fall down internet rabbitholes in search of cool science photos.

We thought you might want a distraction from the news so why not turn your eyes to the sky? Sit back, grab a snack, and learn about some cool natural phenomena.

Have an image you’d like to have added to our world up close gallery? Get in touch. We’ll make sure to give full credit and link to your accounts, websites and/or social media profiles.

Mammatus clouds are a cellular pattern that hangs underneath cloud bases, typically cumulonimbus rainclouds. They are formed by cold air sinking down to form pockets contrary to puffs of clouds rising through the convection of warm air. Courtesy: Canva Premium.
Taken near Waterberg Plateau, Namibia on Oct. 22, 2011. These are crepuscular rays , bright orange sunbeams that happen at twilight. They occur when the sun sets behind an irregularly shaped cloud or mountain and light passes through in bands. Courtesy: Alchemist-hp/Wikipedia
Sunsets tend to be brighter in the fall and winter in some places, due to an increased presence of dry continental, cleaner air. That means less colours will be scattered and more will remain visible. Courtesy: Canva Premium.
A weather or storm front is a boundary that separates bands of thunderstorms and severe weather. Courtesy: Grebelodge CC BY-SA 4.0.
A "fire rainbow", or circumhorizontal arc, occurs when sun travels through tiny ice crystals in the atmosphere, at an angle of at least 58 degrees. They most commonly form in cirrus clouds, but only when they're aligned horizontally. Courtesy: Canva Premium.
The Milky Way galaxy, seen here, is a barred spiral galaxy containing our solar system. It has an estimated visible diameter of 1.9 million light-years and contains an estimated 100 billion - 400 billion stars. Courtesy: Canva Premium.
A lenticular cloud covers the summit crater of Mayon Volcano, 04/23/19. Lenticular clouds are stationary clouds that normally form in the troposphere, perpendicular alignment to wind direction. They often resemble saucers or UFOs. Courtesy: Patryk Reba CC BY-SA 4.0.
A Kelvin–Helmholtz instability occurs when there is velocity shear in a single continuous fluid or when there is a velocity difference across the interface of two fluids. It's often seen as the wind blows over water, in clouds, and in Saturn's bands. Courtesy: GRAHAMUK CC BY-SA 3.0

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