Turbulence Visualized
The future can best be predicted by remembering our experiences and reflecting on the traces of where we have been. Paying attention to the signs, when we witness someone else’s troubles, we can prepare for our own. Contrails normally appear in straight lines marking our disruption of the airmass as we travel through it at subsonic speeds. They gradually dissipate or fall off to lower altitudes. In this case, the erratic vertical zigzag pattern of the contrails mark a moment of moderate turbulence ahead. As we silently thank the pilots ahead, the Captain throws the Seat Belt Sign – ON.
The Aerial Horizon 