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‘Beware the Blackthorn Winter’ is a country saying about a spell of cold weather in early April which often coincides with the blossoming of the blackthorn (Prunus Spinosa). The pure white of the blackthorn blossom matches the snow or hoar frost covering the fields nearby and almost invariably bitter north easterly winds. The longer days and sun gaining strength at this time of year often give a spell of warmer weather - but then the Blackthorn Winter comes along and reminds us it’s not quite summer yet. Statistically, we are more likely to have snow at Easter than at Christmas.
A Blackthorn Winter can be described as the opposite of an Indian summer.
Blackthorn white blossoms appear before the leaves, creating a contrast against the dark smooth thorny branches. The blackthorn flowers eventually become purple sloes, ripening in autumn and harvested traditionally in October or November, after the first frosts, and used to make a Sloe gin liqueur.
As dawn breaks over North Texas, a wind turbine on the University of North Texas campus rises tall against the sky.
Polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) are clouds in the winter polar stratosphere at altitudes of 15,000–25,000 m (49,000–82,000 ft). They are best observed during civil twilight, when the Sun is between 1 and 6 degrees below the horizon, as well as in winter and in more northerly latitudes.[1] One main type of PSC is made up mostly of supercooled droplets of water and nitric acid and is implicated in the formation of ozone holes.[2] The other main type consists only of ice crystals which are not harmful. This type of PSC is also referred to as nacreous (/ˈneɪkriəs/, from nacre, or mother of pearl, due to its iridescence).
source: wikipedia
One from a couple of months ago, square crop with Trevose Lighthouse in the distance.
Best to view in Lightbox, press L.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Zeiss ZE 21mm f2.8 Distagon T*ZE
Exposure 1/8 second @ f/16
Filter used 2 stop soft grad
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© Martin Mattocks Photography