Pink night clouds

03/09/12, 9 pm, looking up

I was imagining being underwater and looking up at fish swimming above through the dark water. I try to paint clouds rather than astronomy if there are clouds. The pink clouds on Friday night were few and far between but I managed this little grouping of altocumulus.


Why are they pink? I don't know. It seems unlikely that they are reflecting the sodium-vapor street lights, but maybe. Maybe the color is changed by some difference in refraction at night. A quick search online did not provide any definitive answer.

Pink city glow

01/11/12, 9:30 pm, looking northwest

All day rain, low clouds and a damp chill. This glow was what I saw as I drove back from a rural area to the city just after 9 pm on Wednesday, January 11th. The low-pressure sodium (LPS) lamps in street lights cause the pink tint in the urban landscape. LPS reduces ambient light pollution and is less distracting for wildlife like migrating birds. 


The low-hanging altocumulus clouds hung in the sky like polyester batting and soaked up the pink LPS glow. Almost looks like cotton candy.