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Storm cloud at sunset over Atlanta. (Taken with instagram)
NASA:
Von Kármán vortices, which can appear as long linear chains of spiral eddies, form nearly anywhere that fluid flow is disturbed by an object. The atmosphere behaves like a fluid, so the wing of an airplane, a bridge, and even an island can cause the vortices to form.
In the image above, an isolated Norwegian territory in the North Atlantic Ocean, called Jan Mayen Island, is responsible for the spiraling cloud pattern. The unique flow occurs when winds rushing from the north encounter Beerenberg Volcano, a snow-covered peak on the eastern end of the island that rises 2.2 kilometers (1.4 miles) above the sea surface. As winds pass around the volcano, the disturbance in the flow propagates downstream in the form of a double row of vortices that alternate their direction of rotation.
Atlanta Botanical Garden.
Storms heading east from PDK.
Beautiful day at Atlanta Botanical Garden.
From America’s Great Outdoors:
Arches National Park in Utah preserves over 2,000 natural sandstone arches, like the world-famous Delicate Arch, as well as many other unusual rock formations. In some areas, the forces of nature have exposed millions of years of geologic history. The extraordinary features of the park create a landscape of contrasting colors, landforms and textures that is unlike any other in the world.
Photo: Jim Karczewski - National Park Service
This is a great park. Southern Utah has most of the best parks in the U.S., and some of the (relatively) least crowded.
![theatlantic:
Beautiful, Mostly Harmless Solar Flare Headed Our Way
The solar flare pictured above erupted from the sun this week causing radiation storms that could affect Earth. Though solar flares are often described in somewhat apocalyptic language — the sun is “exhaling its fury towards Earth” writes The Washington Post Tuesday — this one will probably only briefly disrupt GPS users and power grids later this week. Meanwhile we’re struck as always by the dazzling visual it produced.
[Image: Associated Press/NASA]](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m0j7kasqed1qcokc4o1_500.jpg)
Beautiful, Mostly Harmless Solar Flare Headed Our Way
The solar flare pictured above erupted from the sun this week causing radiation storms that could affect Earth. Though solar flares are often described in somewhat apocalyptic language — the sun is “exhaling its fury towards Earth” writes The Washington Post Tuesday — this one will probably only briefly disrupt GPS users and power grids later this week. Meanwhile we’re struck as always by the dazzling visual it produced.
[Image: Associated Press/NASA]
