Undercast?

[donnellyvj]

I see all of these pictures of undercast skies and they are great. What is the best time of day to see undercast? I would think early morning if the weather conditions are right.

[Bill O]

Well, it has to be cloudy, you have to be on a mountain and those clouds have to be below you. So those factors are more important than time of day.

I've seen undercast up there at all times of the day.

If I had to pick a time it would be the morning. Best chance of valley fog at that time, which isn't really undercast, but enough fog can look like an undercast. Also, an undercast usually involves an inversion which is more likely to occur when the sun isn't giving maximum heat to the surface.

[JimS]

It is a tricky thing to get...thats for sure. I've had days in a row that were undercast, and fall seems to be the best time for that...with low level moisture trapped below stable air.

Time of day...morning valley fog looks nice from the summit, but doesn't count as undercast. Really, it's just picking it lucky...

[Mike D]

Bill, you smart donkey. You should also mention that it must be daytime, since Donnelly asked for the best time to "see" an undercast.

Well, it has to be cloudy, you have to be on a mountain and those clouds have to be below you. So those factors are more important than time of day.

[Bill O]

Bill, you smart donkey. You should also mention that it must be daytime, since Donnelly asked for the best time to "see" an undercast.

I saw an undercast on a bright moonlit night one fine October eve back in '04. Fine for those of us on the summit, of course.

He didn't make it precisely clear he wanted to see one from the mountain. I just wanted to make it known that the odds of seeing one out your back door is quite low.

[donnellyvj]

Sounds good. Maybe I'll get lucky October 12th. I have the Fall thing going so far.

[Bill O]

Sounds good. Maybe I'll get lucky October 12th. I have the Fall thing going so far.

I think you are right, you just have to get lucky. Tough to forecast, and hard to get to unless you live in the neighborhood. Webcams certainly help.

[JimS]

I think that one of the biggest factors not yet stated is that you have to be willing to go up the mountain when you can't see the mountain. Alot of people wait for the clear days, but for an undercast...well it's cloudy in the valleys.

[Bill O]

If a mountain top pokes above the clouds and nobody is there to see it, did it really happen?

[h2oeco]

It certainly happened last October, and there were people there to see it...