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An Earlier Sighting?
As it turns out there is at least one possible NLC sighting that predates the Krakatoa event by 35 years. Dr Christopher John Butler research astronomer at Armagh Observatory, N. Ireland who is passionate in the field of historical meteorological and atmospheric phenomena highlights observations recorded in the observatories meteorological records by Thomas Romney Robinson who was the third director of the observatory at the time. Robinson made a series of interesting observations between 1849 and 1852, however two of his entries in May 1850 may describe Noctilucent clouds. One the 1st of May he notes ''strange luminous clouds in NW, not auroral''. This does sound very much like NLCs even though early May falls outside the typical NLC 'window' however it is still possible as NLCs can form at Armagh's latitude within this period. (Read the historical pdf doc)
An early observer of NLCs, Robert Leslie, gives a striking account of these clouds describing them as ''weird small cloud forms, at times very regular, like ripple marks in sand, or the bones of some great fish or saurian embedded on a slab of stone'' (Ken Kennedy 2006). A marvelous description which I'm sure gave birth to the 'herring bone' classification structure in modern times.
An Earlier Sighting?
As it turns out there is at least one possible NLC sighting that predates the Krakatoa event by 35 years. Dr Christopher John Butler research astronomer at Armagh Observatory, N. Ireland who is passionate in the field of historical meteorological and atmospheric phenomena highlights observations recorded in the observatories meteorological records by Thomas Romney Robinson who was the third director of the observatory at the time. Robinson made a series of interesting observations between 1849 and 1852, however two of his entries in May 1850 may describe Noctilucent clouds. One the 1st of May he notes ''strange luminous clouds in NW, not auroral''. This does sound very much like NLCs even though early May falls outside the typical NLC 'window' however it is still possible as NLCs can form at Armagh's latitude within this period. (Read the historical pdf doc)
An early observer of NLCs, Robert Leslie, gives a striking account of these clouds describing them as ''weird small cloud forms, at times very regular, like ripple marks in sand, or the bones of some great fish or saurian embedded on a slab of stone'' (Ken Kennedy 2006). A marvelous description which I'm sure gave birth to the 'herring bone' classification structure in modern times.
