Stunning Lenticular Clouds. 12-10-2025.

Geraint December 10, 2025 10 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, NM. This week, lenticular clouds, and this seems to be the season. Although these clouds can appear throughout the year, they are particularly abundant right now. Their stunning, lens-like shapes add a touch of magic to the already breathtaking landscape, making this time of year truly special.

Enjoy! And click on the image to enlarge.

Lenticular clouds San Cristobal — From our deck in San Cristobal.

San Cristobal — Moments before the following photo.

Lenticular clouds — From the deck in San Cristobal.

Click on the image below for a full panorama of the total event. I was driving home from Santa Fe when this happened. I believe it was visible across the entire state.

Taos Pueblo Peak lenticular clouds. — Taos Pueblo Peak, from the deck.

Taos mountains moonrise — Mountain Moonrise.

Lenticular clouds with Kelvin-Helmholtz clouds that look like ocean waves are forming.

Kelvin-Helmholtz clouds look like ocean waves — From the garden wall to the Jemez Mountains.

Lenticular clouds are lens-shaped clouds that typically form at high altitudes, often in perpendicular alignment to the wind direction. They are scientifically known as “altocumulus lenticularis” and are most commonly found in mountainous regions. These clouds form when stable, moist air flows over a mountain or a range of mountains, creating a series of oscillating waves. If the temperature at the crest of these waves drops to the dew point, moisture in the air condenses to form clouds.

Lenticular clouds are known for their distinctive, smooth, and often saucer-like appearance, which can sometimes be mistaken for UFOs. They are stationary, meaning they don’t move with the wind like other clouds, but instead remain fixed in position while the air flows through them.

These clouds can indicate turbulence for aircraft, as the wave patterns that create them can also produce strong updrafts and downdrafts. Despite this, they are often admired for their striking and unusual appearance, making them a popular subject for photographers and cloud enthusiasts.

Click here for more on these clouds from Earthsky.

Looking north from the New Mexico/Colorado state line.

As always, thanks for looking and all the comments, compliments, and emails. Have a great week. G

Planets, Crescent Moon, Sunset Clouds. 06-28-2023

Geraint June 28, 2023 8 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal. On the evening of June 21, the summer solstice, the planets Venus and Mars showed up with the crescent Moon anchored by the sunset clouds. The beauty of this world is just outside the door and perfectly poised for our viewing pleasure. Franz Kafka put it more eloquently than I did.

“You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait, be quiet, still, and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet.” Franz Kafka

Planets, Venus, Crescent moon — Crescent Moon and Venus.

Zoom in on this second shot to see planet Mars on the upper left edge of the picture. I didn’t see it with my eyes or through the lens at first. It was a pleasant surprise when it magically appeared (pardon me) out of the blue.

Planets, Venus, Mars, Crescent moon — Planets, Venus, Mars, and Crescent Moon.

Sometimes I poke my camera through a window, a window in a building that I’ve passed many times, and find a surprise before me. A broken window helped me access this scene in a gas station on US 285 in Colorado. It reminds me of the upright piano in my grandparent’s house where I lived growing up in Wales. Our upright piano was more ornate, with two candle holders on either side. I was always encouraged to tap on the keys. My grandparents were very tolerant. I never did learn to play the piano.

This week, just outside the back door, the daylilies are blooming. On the other side of the house, outside the front door, the Apache plume has filled out and glistens in the morning sun. Here’s a shot of the Apache Plume in the afternoon rain.

day lily SC — Daylily shot and edited on an iPhone 13 Pro Max.

Looking outwards or looking inward, there’s plenty to discover. I find sitting still offers me a perspective that suits me well, plus I’m good at spending time doing absolutely nothing. Ask my wife!

As always, thanks for looking. G

Tree, Cloud, Piedra Lumbre, Ghost Ranch, NM

Geraint November 30, 2020 2 Comments

Tree and cloud, in the Piedra Lumbre (Shining Rock) Land Grant, Ghost Ranch, New Mexico. The landscape shines, the sky responds, and the dance between earth and sky continues. Thanks for looking. G

La Luna, Earth Shine, Old Cottonwood Tree

Geraint November 17, 2020 2 Comments

La Luna with earthshine, framed by our old cottonwood tree in the field. This tree, half alive and half dead is a hang out for many species of birds who frequent the valley. They have an excellent view of the deck and hence the bird feeders. Last night when the moon came out they’d already left their perches or they would have seen this beautiful sight. Thanks for looking in too. G

Northern New Mexico, Evening Sky

Geraint September 9, 2020 12 Comments

Northern New Mexico, one epic evening sky. In celebration of my fifteen year anniversary of posting one photo every day since September 9, 2005. I started my website with a rainbow so I thought I post a rainbow, with walking rain (virga) followed literally by the most amazing sunset a few days ago. Today we have snow and cold temperatures, so I stayed in all day. My website is my visual journal, I visit often. Thank you for joining me all these years. Onward! G

Sun, Fire Smoke, Wind, Taos Valley And Beyond

Geraint September 8, 2020 10 Comments

Sun and fire smoke with wind across the Taos Valley and beyond. A few images from yesterday evening when smoke from Colorado, California and New Mexico filled the skies over most of the state. I had fun finding locations most of which I’m very familiar with so it wasn’t too difficult. Rather apocalyptic looking. Stay safe, be well and thanks for looking. G

Summer Sunsets, Fiery Skies, Northern New Mexico

Geraint August 23, 2020 4 Comments

Summer sunsets and fiery skies, in northern New Mexico. Three photos today. One of the smokey sunset yesterday evening followed by the fiery ball of the sun setting shortly thereafter. The third image is one I came across from 2011 that I shot from my parking lot incorporating the left over rain puddle. Stay safe every one and as always, thank you for looking. G

Satellites, Comet, Sky, Volcano, Stars, NM

Geraint July 20, 2020 8 Comments

Satellites, Comet, Sky, Volcano, Stars, northern New Mexico. It’s supposed to be clear up tonight, so I’m heading out. We’ll see what transpires. There’s a lot of space junk cluttering up the skies. The satellites in the second photo are composited from seven images taken over an 8 minute time frame. I’m sure that I use plenty of the technology they provide, so I’ll take it. It’s only a flick of the cloning tool away from eliminated in Photoshop® should I so choose. Thanks for looking. G

Comet/2020 F3 NEOWISE, Taos Plateau

Geraint July 15, 2020 6 Comments

Comet/2020 F3 NEOWISE, northwest of Taos over the Volcanic Field/Plateau. When you see it, it’s hard to un see, until that is, when it vanishes into the clouds. Yesterday evening the fully overcast skies cleared a little, so I drove a few miles up into the hills behind the house for this view. The second image is when it emerged from the clouds setting over Cerro Chiflo, an old volcano. Thanks for looking. G

Milky Way, Saturn, Jupiter, Antares, Scorpius

Geraint July 12, 2020 8 Comments

Milky Way with Saturn, Jupiter, Antares and the “cat’ eyes” in the constellation Scorpius from San Cristobal, NM. Antares is intriguing as it’s name translates to ‘rival of Mars’, more to do with it’s color than size. In size, Mars is no rival. Scroll down for labels. Thanks for looking. G

Geraint Smith Photography

Tag: Skies