Friday, October 16, 2009

The Clouds Sail in Like Crystal Ships; Monsoon Weather for Skywatch Friday


According to the National Weather Service: A monsoon is generally defined as a seasonal variation of wind, cloud cover and precipitation that is controlled by the annual cycle of the sun. In climates that are strongly influenced by monsoons, most of the annual precipitation is received during the monsoon season. Portions of the southwest United States, including New Mexico, are influenced by the North American Monsoon System (NAMS), which is also referred to as the Southwest Monsoon. Many locations in New Mexico receive 40 to 50 percent of the annual precipitation during the period from July 1 through August 31 and much, but not all, of the summer rainfall can be attributed to the Southwest Monsoon.

I'm a little late with my monsoon cloud photos, but these are pretty much what we see in the afternoons in eastern New Mexico during the monsoon season (even though these photos were taken in September). Our mornings often bring us clear blue skies, but once we pass noon, the crystal ships come sailing in from the south and the west.

Umbrella man come

Quick, quick, quick,

The monsoon rain is here.

The rain is finally here.


~Lisa, Newcastle Community High School



16 comments:

Jean (aka Auntie Bucksnort) said...

"Crystal ships". What a beautiful image!

Joe Todd said...

Really great sky shots. All I have in Ohio today is clouds

lizziviggi said...

What gorgeous, light-kissed clouds. I love your description of "crystal ships"-- I might always think of them that way now!

JC said...

Your photos are fabulously interesting.
Since I got my new camera, I'm looking more at the sky than I used to and I was always looking at the sky.
Basically, I'm always looking up now.

Della said...

Do you get any rain?

Anonymous said...

I like the crystal ship image, too. You seem to have been there long enough to read the weather very well.

Sylvia K said...

Marvelous shots, Clariz! I, too, love the "crystal ship" image! Lovely words as well!

Have a lovely weekend!

Sylvia

SandyCarlson said...

That was interesting information. Beautiful photos.

nonizamboni said...

Spoken and visual images-Wow! Who knew a storm could be so welcome and lovely.
Happy Autumn and happy weekend!

jabblog said...

Crystal ships - wonderful imagery!

Pacey said...

These are neat shots of the sky. Just beautiful clairz. Am sorry for the late reply.

Judy said...

Those clouds are absolutely beautiful. Great photos. Hope you are feeling better by now.

Anonymous said...

The clouds are lovely and the rain they bring welcome. Thanks for sharing your photos and your word pictures!

Beth said...

Lovely pictures and lovely words, Clair. Like other commenters, I love the poetic description of clouds as "crystal ships." So nice to see them sail across the sky...

Pearl Maple said...

Beautiful words to match a beautiful view, thank you for sharing this delightful patch of sky.

Dewdrop said...

Lovely description. Love your use of words.