{"id":337556,"date":"2026-07-12T10:25:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T10:25:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/337556\/"},"modified":"2026-07-12T10:25:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T10:25:08","slug":"was-the-unique-cloud-over-jacksonville-aliens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/337556\/","title":{"rendered":"Was the unique cloud over Jacksonville… aliens?!"},"content":{"rendered":"

A unique weather phenomenon across the First Coast led many to believe that we may not be alone in the universe!<\/p>\n

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 A severe thunderstorm moved over Jacksonville Saturday evening, but for some of those on the edges may have asked, “are the aliens arriving?”<\/p>\n

This was because they saw a unique weather phenomenon that looked almost like a UFO rainbow.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The colorful phenomenon was actually cloud iridescence, a relatively rare optical effect that can occur in the upper portions of towering cumulonimbus clouds.<\/p>\n


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The thunderstorm responsible for the display grew to an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 feet into the atmosphere, where temperatures are cold enough for ice crystals to form near the cloud top. As sunlight passed through those tiny ice crystals, the light was scattered and refracted, producing vivid rainbow-like colors visible from certain viewing angles.<\/p>\n

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Unlike a traditional rainbow, which is created by sunlight passing through raindrops, cloud iridescence forms when sunlight interacts with very small water droplets or ice crystals in a cloud. The effect is highly dependent on the position of both the sun and the observer, meaning only some people will be in the right location to witness the display.<\/p>\n

Many of the photographs submitted by First Coast News Weather Watchers showed the sun positioned behind the thunderstorm, creating ideal conditions for the colorful glow to appear along the cloud’s upper edge.<\/p>\n

The phenomenon is often compared to the shifting colors seen on the surface of a soap bubble or a thin layer of oil on water. In both cases, light is scattered into different wavelengths, producing rainbow colors.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It’s just another reminder of why we’re so grateful for our First Coast Weather Watchers<\/a>, who continually share incredible photos of unique weather phenomena like this<\/p>\n

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