lenticular cloud
Not to be outdone by the wildlife and mountains, the clouds have their day. These lenticular clouds were everywhere today.
Lenticular, or lens-shaped clouds, are formed by air moving over the surface of the Earth that encounters obstructions, like, say, mountains—big mountains. The air swirls around the obstacle and, under the right conditions of moisture, temperature, and dew point, can form these crazy saucer shapes that some people mistake for UFOs.
Never knew this before. New name for me.
I learned this from a friend in Reno (Hi, Steve!) who has a great photo of a lenticular cloud over Mt. Shasta. I had never heard of them before either, and now I’ve seen some for myself.