Early risers spot rare 'night shining' clouds

Noctilucent clouds, shown in an image taken at Aberdeen Airport on Tuesday, appear as blue and silver streaks high up in the sky

Rare clouds that form in summer high up in the Earth's atmosphere have been seen from parts of Scotland.

BBC Weather Watchers who were up from between about 02:00 to 06:00 on Tuesday spotted the noctilucent clouds.

They have been seen in the skies above Edinburgh, Aberdeen and other locations across the country.

Their Latin name means "night shining" and the clouds usually appear as streaks of blue or silver.

BBC Weather Watcher Shona McMillan took her picture of the clouds from Edinburgh at about 06:30

The Met Office describes the clouds as "extremely rare" and they are formed by ice crystals at a height of at least 60,960m (200,000ft).

They appear on clear summer nights in a layer of the atmosphere known as the mesosphere.

A view of the striking clouds from Lanark in South Lanarkshire

The Met Office says that, like many other types of clouds, noctilucent clouds need water vapour, dust and low temperatures to form.

It says dust from small meteors could help the clouds form high in the mesosphere, but pollution from Earth could also be a contributing factor.

BBC Weather Watcher Astronut took this shot of the sky from Elgin in Moray