Thursday, February 20, 2014

Contrails at night??

I've always assumed contrails were a daytime phenomenon. Kind of a silly assumption, right? Just because it's dark and you can't see them doesn't mean they are not there. Anyway, I was taking some moon shots last weekend during the full moon out in the desert near Joshua Tree, and enjoying the fast moving clouds moving in and out of my shots. It was a beautiful night with warm temps and a nice desert breeze.

I figured that was about it for my night photography, but I decided to check out the sky about a half hour later... and here's what I saw.
This dark diagonal "cloud" became better defined a few minutes later...
Diagonal cloud? Night contrail? UFO exhaust?? Your guess is as good as mine. These are not Photoshopped other than a crop and a slight exposure adjust.
Linking with Skywatch Friday.
Click on the link to check out great skies from around the world. And thanks to YogiSylvia and Sandy for all their hard work hosting this site!!

32 comments:

  1. Wow - those dark contrails are amazing. What superb shots!

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  2. the lighting and textures make for interesting photos

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  3. Great moon shots. In number 2 the moon seems to glow. I like it.

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  4. Goodness, I love your moon shots and that cloud or whatever it is, is extraordinary! Brilliant photography, great detail on the moon's surface.

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  5. I never thought about that either. These shots are wonderful!

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  6. Nice shots. I guess I never thought about contrails at night. I am still startled though I must confess when flying on overcast days when the plane breaks through the clouds and into the sunlight.

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  7. Never checked myself but there is no reason not to see contrails at night

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  8. Wonderful shots of the dark contrails in front of the moon.

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  9. That's great how you've caught it in front of the moon. I've definitely seen them after dark on a bright, moonlit night.

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  10. These shots look so magical! (and so rare....!) :)

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  11. Well I'll be - never thought of that happening. Great photos.

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  12. Goodness, that IS unusual! Great captures.

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  13. Wow, that last photo in particular is amazing!

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  14. Assuming they are contrails, what are the odds they would be right in front of the moon? Unusual!

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  15. I'm going with UFO exhaust. Why not? LOL WONDERFUL photos. I've never figured out how to photograph the sky at night. I'm a dismal failure at it. Happy weekend and thanks for stopping by IHATH.

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  16. You were in the right place at the right time! These are stunning.

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  17. Wow. Very nice shots. Your guess is as good as mine as to what they capture.

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  18. Fantastic moon shots, especially the one with mysterious dark contrails. You must keep it, perhaps one day NASA may need it for an evidence. Who knows? :)
    Thanks for dropping by.

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  19. Nice pictures.

    I'm looking forward to seeing a little part of (almost) your world next week - I will be in Arizona!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

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  20. Great pictures of the moon. Like you I've never noticed contrails at night but there's really no reason why they shouldn't exist.

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  21. Your moon photos are so beautifully ethereal! The contrail/chemtrail slashing across it, especially in that last shot, looks ominous! Funny how they had to be backlit by the moon in order to be visible, definitely had never occurred to me before! (I envy you your warm desert nights, by the way!) :-)

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  22. Well now that you mention it...makes sense. Magical photos. wonderful to be out there at night; I envy you!

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  23. Interesting, something for the observant to ponder....

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  24. Must have taken some effort to capture these! Beautiful collection.

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  25. Absolutely stunning and fascinating shots! Gorgeous!

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