Rare "night-shining" clouds appear over Seattle

While most slept, stunning and rare "night-shining" clouds lit up the night sky over Seattle, Wash. At around 3:15 a.m. PDT, gorgeous ribbons of blue and silver clouds appeared over the Washington horizon putting on a show for those who were awake to see it. The weather service called this one of the most vivid displays of noctilucent clouds in years.

Formally known as Noctilucent Clouds, from the Latin meaning "night-shining," these shimmering clouds form at around 50 miles above the Earth's surface in the mesosphere. They are thought to be created from the sun's reflection of ice crystals when temperatures in the mesosphere reach a staggering minus 200°F.

Noctilucent Clouds are primarily visible during the summer months when the sun sits just below the horizon, usually around 90 minutes after sunset or before sunrise between latitudes of 45° and 80°. On a clear night, try to spot this fabulous phenomenon when the skies are almost clear where you are. If you do, take a picture and send it to us using the app. We would love to see them!