Matthew Cappucci

The human-made “noctilucent” cloud Tuesday was both rare and spectacular, though visible for only a short period for early risers.

At 8:28 p.m., darkness fell like a ghostly shroud on the landscape.

Despite advances in science, the corona, or outermost part of the sun’s atmosphere, remains mysterious. Wednesday’s total solar eclipse provides a chance to study it.

There’s essentially a west-to-east conveyor belt that’s pumping high-altitude smoke eastward.

The smoke minimized the buildup of storm fuel, blunting a forecast this week for strong storms in northern Vermont, New Hampshire and western Maine.

A few lucky countries in Europe and Asia will get to experience the show, and totality will occur over parts of Greenland, Iceland and Spain.

Only nine named storms are expected basin-wide, according to researchers at Colorado State University, notably lower than the annual average of 14.4.

Every day could feature scattered baseball-size hail, and perhaps a couple tornadoes.

Each of the next several days features the potential for locally higher-end severe weather across broad swaths of the country.

Suddenly, something incredible emerged: a razor-sharp divide between white curtains of rain and clear-blue sky. The lighting was sublime.