Way easier than the Albireo conundrum; It was the Smoke Monster from Lost! On May 18, 2009, at 4:16 PM, Corr, Tom wrote:
Yesterday, as I was driving, I noticed out my front windscreen what appeared to be a column of smoke rising from the ground well into the sky about 10 degrees to the left of my forward vision. The thing that initially struck me was it was very vague and hard to see. I first had to ensure that I was really seeing it. Secondly, the two sides of the column (of smoke) were perfectly square and the two sides remained for its entire distance parallel. I noticed in the blue sky overhead a jet contrail. The Sun was directly above the contrail.
I have never seen a contrail shadowed in the atmosphere near the ground. While I was flying a plane above a cloud layer, I have seen contrail shadows cast onto the tops of the clouds. But this one did not appear to be cast onto any "surface." It appeared to be vertically suspended in the noontime air. Any help? Perhaps it was an illusion. Hopefully the answer is easier that the questions raised about Albireo. ;-)
Thomas N. Corr Linn County Legal Counsel