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© Santiago BorjaA developing thunderstorm climbs high into the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean south of Panama.
Taken from a plane at the moment of a lightning flash, it illustrates both the ferocity of a turbulent atmosphere and the beauty of Mother Nature. A strong, roiling updraft; a smooth, flat anvil; and the overshooting top — all features of intense developing thunderstorms.
The photo was taken over the Pacific Ocean from the cockpit of an airplane. The photographer and pilot, Santiago Borja, says he was circling around it at 37,000 feet altitude en route to South America when he captured this spectacular view.
Borja said it was difficult to get the shot in near-darkness and during a bumpy ride. "Storms are tricky because the lightning is so fast, there is no tripod and there is a lot of reflection from inside lights," Borja told The Washington Post in an email.
"I like this photo so much because you can feel the amazing size of the storm and its power," Borja said. "But at the same time it's wonderful how peacefully you can fly around it in still air without touching it."
The photo was taken with his Nikon D750 camera south of Panama on a Boeing 767-300.
"I primarily enjoy nature, landscape and cityscape photography," Borja said. "Since I carry my camera everywhere, I started trying to capture storms and in-flight experiences some time ago combining my two greatest passions: flying and photography."
© Tom LoweSun halo and smaller halo over Redcar.
No, little green men weren't spotted over Teesside , but there was something looking rather other-worldly...A sun Halo.
A Sun halo is formed when light is refracted in millions of hexagonal ice crystals which are suspended in the atmosphere and can be formed at different degrees.
"Over the past few years I have become increasingly interested in observing and photographing atmospheric optical phenomena," Said Tom Lowe who took the picture in Redcar.
"So when the sky is full of hazy high cirrus cloud as it was over Redcar, I regularly glance towards (never at) the sun.
"This is because these clouds are formed of tiny hexagonal ice crystals which reflect and refract sunlight in predictable ways, forming impressive and sometimes spectacular halos and arcs in the sky."
And while the large halo is actually quite common - we just end up missing them due to cleverly not staring at the Sun - the smaller halo is very rare. "The 9-degree halo is a much rarer sight, and this was the first I have seen. An aircraft contrail bisects the halos, itself casting a thin dark shadow on the cirrus, and to the left of this is a patch of much lower cloud, probably altocumulus.
© Tom Lowe
The victims, identified as Selma Güneş (26) and her nephew Devran Erdem (9) were taking a walk towards the Döşkaya hill in Eskigeçit village, accompanied with Erdem's mother Sevgi Erdem (36) and her younger sister Cansu Ekinci (13). The Erdems were reportedly in Kars to celebrate Eid al-Fitr with their family and wanted to pick up local herbs while visiting.
According to reports, they were attacked by bears when they saw a dead baby bear as they were walking and were trying to figure out what happened.
Selma Güneş and Devran Erdem reportedly fell off a cliff as they were trying to run away from the bears, while Cansu Ekinci and Sevgi Erdem were saved by shepherds who saw the incident.
Cansu Ekinci and Sevgi Erdem, who were hospitalized following the tragedy are reportedly in stable condition.
Both windshields of the China Southern Airlines plane were severely damaged during a hail storm as it descended towards its destination of Chengdu
The battering by hailstones caused multiple cracks across both windshields, obliterating the view and forcing the pilots to fly virtually 'blind'.
Fortunately, the crew managed to land the aircraft safely at the Chinese airport and there were no injuries reported.
According to AV Herald, the Airbus A320 was travelling from Guangzhou to Chengdu on July 9.
Flight CZ3483 encountered the hail storm as it descended towards the southern Chinese city.
AV Herald described the windshield as having become 'basically opaque'.
This meant the pilots had to navigate using their instruments rather than by sight.
The nose of the plane had most of its paint stripped off by the hailstones with the metal bodywork showing
© STR | AFP | Getty Images
Since June 18, the regions have suffered their worst bout of flooding in a decade, furthered by a category 4 typhoon that hit the mainland after sweeping through Taiwan Friday morning, local time.
The storm has brought about 1 to 2 feet of rain in some regions, and gauges have measured winds as fast as 125 miles per hour, according to the Weather Channel.
Since flooding began, 186 people have been reported dead and 45 missing, according to figures reported by the BBC. About 1.4 million people have been evacuated from their homes.
The storm has reportedly weakened, but worries continue that more rain is headed for areas that are already under several inches of water.
This spells trouble for future generations, which is why Norway recently banned the practice of deforestation - the first in the world to do so.
© Reg ButlerDead sperm whale on Cornish beach
The creature, measuring 40 feet, was discovered on its side in the shallows at Perranporth beach when the tide went out.
Marine specialists said being out of the water for so long would have caused internal injuries and, even if they could refloat her, she would probably not survive.
HM Coastguard were on the scene to manage public safety.
© Idaho Dept. of TransportationSnow at Lost Trail Pass in Idaho.
Monday morning, a light coating of snow could be seen on an Idaho DOT webcam at Lost Trail Pass.
Snow fell at elevations as low as 6,500 feet in the hills around Grangeville, Idaho, on Sunday evening.
© Department of ConservationObservers stand around the 8.9 metre humpback whale, washed up on Ashburton's Wakanui beach.
The 8.9-metre juvenile whale was first spotted in Kaikoura in March.
The whale attracted international media attention earlier this year when it appeared to breach, roll and manoeuvre despite not having an intact tail.
Kaikoura Department of Conservation (DOC) ranger Mike Morrissey said the whale may not have been able to keep up with its pod, although its cause of death was a mystery.
Geraldine DOC biodiversity ranger Steve Harraway said the whale could have died about a week ago before washing ashore.
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