8 October 2009

Rare Asperatus Clouds Over Osage County Oklahoma

Posted by Dan Satterfield

Asperatus cloud NW of Pawhuska Oklahoma on Wednesday. Dan's picture.

Asperatus cloud NW of Pawhuska Oklahoma on Wednesday. Dan's picture.

I wrote a post awhile back about ASPERATUS clouds and the Cloud Appreciation Society trying to get them officially added as a cloud type by the World Meteorological Organization.

Well, sometimes you run into some luck. Read on..

IMG_3349rzWhile visiting my Mother in Oklahoma on Wednesday, I decided to drive up to Woolaroc Museum near Bartlesville. It’s a truly beautiful drive across the prairie from Tulsa. Near the museum is the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve. This preserve was bought by the Nature Conservancy. It’s protected a huge area of native prairie to the northwest of Pawhuska.

There were once millions of acres of unbroken prairie stretching from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. Only around 10% remains. Another large area is federally protected in Kansas.

The best thing about the prairie sometimes, is the sky above it. Near Pawhuska- Dan's pic.

The best thing about the prairie sometimes, is the sky above it. Near Pawhuska- Dan's pic.

Woolaroc is a must see if you find yourself in Oklahoma, and so is the Tall Grass.  Be warned, the roads through the prairie preserve are gravel to protect it.

We were racing against an approaching storm system that was going to turn the bright blue western sky into cloud and rain by evening, but that turned out to be a good thing! A beautiful display of ASPERATUS clouds developed over the prairie and lasted for 45 minutes as we drove back toward Skiatook.

Oh, and quit laughing about the Cloud Appreciation Society!

I’m a member!

Later,
Dan