Sapa - Cloudscapes - Vietnam
Multi-layered dramatic clouds for striking sky photography
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What this forecast looks for
Plain-language explanation from the ruleThis forecast tracks dramatic cloud conditions across Vietnam's varied landscapes, from monsoon systems moving over coastal areas to orographic clouds forming around mountain peaks. We analyze cloud types, coverage patterns, weather system movement, and seasonal monsoon patterns to predict when sky drama combines with Vietnam's distinctive natural and cultural features.
Vietnam's location in Southeast Asia's monsoon region and its dramatic topography—mountains exceeding 10,000 feet alongside extensive coastline—create dynamic cloud conditions. The wet season (May through September in the north) brings towering cumulus and cumulonimbus formations, while the dry season offers clearer skies with occasional dramatic frontal systems. Mountains around Sapa and Da Lat generate orographic clouds year-round.
What makes Vietnam cloudscape photography special:
- Limestone karst drama - Ha Long Bay's thousands of islands provide epic foreground elements under monsoon cloudscapes and clearing storms
- Mountain cloud formations - Sapa and Mu Cang Chai valleys fill with clouds that interact with rice terraces and mountain peaks
- Coastal weather systems - Da Nang's coastline and Marble Mountains create dramatic compositions as weather systems approach from the South China Sea
- Cave country atmospherics - Phong Nha's jungle-clad limestone mountains under turbulent tropical skies create moody, atmospheric conditions
Ha Long Bay offers Vietnam's most dramatic cloudscape potential—thousands of limestone karsts provide endless compositional possibilities under monsoon clouds. Late afternoon during wet season (June-September) brings towering cumulus, while shoulder seasons offer the most dynamic conditions. Sapa's high elevation means clouds often form below the town, creating opportunities to photograph valleys filled with clouds while peaks pierce through. Da Nang's Dragon Bridge and Marble Mountains work exceptionally well under dramatic skies. The Hai Van Pass between Da Nang and Hue frequently experiences dramatic cloud conditions where mountains meet the sea. Wet season delivers the most dramatic cloudscapes but requires rain protection.
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72-hour requirements breakdown
What passed or failed, hour by hourTime Asia/Bangkok | Cloud Drama Score ≥ 75.0% | Low Clouds ≥ 20.0% | Mid-Level Clouds OR1·B1≥ 30.0% | High Clouds OR1·B2≥ 40.0% | Visibility ≥ 5000.0m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed, Jul 8 | |||||
| 12:00 | 44% | 70% | 84% | 100% | 4503m |
| 13:00 | 45% | 62% | 100% | 100% | 12719m |
| 14:00 | 43% | 46% | 100% | 77% | 12240m |
| 15:00 | 62% | 36% | 100% | 58% | 24135m |
| 16:00 | 51% | 28% | 100% | 100% | 24134m |
| 17:00 | 57% | 16% | 100% | 100% | 24134m |
| 18:00 | 58% | 24% | 100% | 100% | 24134m |
| 19:00 | 58% | 30% | 98% | 100% | 17487m |
| 20:00 | 0.7% | 29% | 93% | 100% | 17384m |
| 21:00 | 4.3% | 25% | 84% | 49% | 17370m |
| 22:00 | 6.7% | 25% | 95% | 33% | 17348m |
| 23:00 | 4.6% | 46% | 100% | 94% | 17307m |
| Thu, Jul 9 | |||||
| 24:00 | 6.4% | 56% | 88% | 14% | 9549m |
| 01:00 | 3.7% | 57% | 48% | 79% | 5529m |
| 02:00 | 1.9% | 69% | 77% | 96% | 358m |
| 03:00 | 4% | 73% | 100% | 82% | 224m |
| 04:00 | 6.8% | 76% | 66% | 93% | 201m |
| 05:00 | 80% | 82% | 100% | 14% | 160m |
| 06:00 | 62% | 80% | 95% | 3.8% | 144m |
| 07:00 | 65% | 86% | 82% | 2.6% | 106m |
| 08:00 | 60% | 84% | 78% | 4.8% | 120m |
| 09:00 | 89% | 75% | 56% | 6.7% | 3593m |
| 10:00 | 64% | 85% | 76% | 18% | 765m |
| 11:00 | 67% | 70% | 61% | 4.9% | 262m |
| 12:00 | 72% | 71% | 31% | 5.9% | 3406m |
| 13:00 | 74% | 65% | 13% | 5.8% | 7963m |
| 14:00 | 63% | 80% | 62% | 5.8% | 8080m |
| 15:00 | 96% | 46% | 48% | 5% | 16493m |
| 16:00 | 66% | 51% | 9.5% | 5% | 24135m |
| 17:00 | 76% | 53% | 5% | 5.5% | 24134m |
| 18:00 | 67% | 36% | 5% | 4.9% | 19506m |
| 19:00 | 73% | 41% | 5% | 5% | 20236m |
| 20:00 | 14% | 45% | 5% | 34% | 9546m |
| 21:00 | 8% | 55% | 21% | 98% | 9401m |
| 22:00 | 6.7% | 54% | 20% | 100% | 11646m |
| 23:00 | 6.1% | 72% | 9.4% | 79% | 12955m |
| Fri, Jul 10 | |||||
| 24:00 | 1.5% | 83% | 5% | 85% | 9361m |
| 01:00 | 0.1% | 83% | 17% | 100% | 310m |
| 02:00 | 1.3% | 90% | 14% | 100% | 142m |
| 03:00 | 2.8% | 97% | 21% | 100% | 94m |
| 04:00 | 7.4% | 98% | 48% | 100% | 72m |
| 05:00 | 60% | 99% | 35% | 100% | 57m |
| 06:00 | 65% | 99% | 30% | 100% | 52m |
| 07:00 | 64% | 99% | 21% | 95% | 48m |
| 08:00 | 43% | 99% | 7.6% | 100% | 44m |
| 09:00 | 44% | 98% | 8.9% | 100% | 46m |
| 10:00 | 35% | 97% | 6.8% | 100% | 50m |
| 11:00 | 35% | 97% | 5% | 100% | 59m |
| 12:00 | 37% | 95% | 5% | 100% | 69m |
| 13:00 | 38% | 93% | 5% | 85% | 106m |
| 14:00 | 50% | 83% | 5.5% | 36% | 176m |
| 15:00 | 62% | 80% | 14% | 73% | 5680m |
| 16:00 | 52% | 83% | 14% | 100% | 1126m |
| 17:00 | 38% | 85% | 5% | 100% | 9299m |
| 18:00 | 38% | 85% | 5% | 100% | 1252m |
| 19:00 | 38% | 64% | 5% | 100% | 395m |
| 20:00 | 0% | 68% | 8.9% | 100% | 331m |
| 21:00 | 0.1% | 77% | 29% | 100% | 187m |
| 22:00 | 8.3% | 79% | 8.5% | 100% | 146m |
| 23:00 | 9.5% | 80% | 24% | 95% | 127m |
| Sat, Jul 11 | |||||
| 24:00 | 12% | 83% | 7.5% | 100% | 110m |
| 01:00 | 3.7% | 85% | 5% | 100% | 108m |
| 02:00 | 0% | 58% | 5% | 67% | 8117m |
| 03:00 | 0% | 31% | 5% | 35% | 16126m |
| 04:00 | 0% | 4.5% | 5% | 2% | 24135m |
| 05:00 | 31% | 11% | 4.9% | 2% | 22554m |
| 06:00 | 40% | 17% | 4.9% | 2.1% | 20974m |
| 07:00 | 49% | 23% | 4.8% | 2.1% | 19393m |
| 08:00 | 99% | 36% | 10% | 15% | 20974m |
| 09:00 | 99% | 48% | 16% | 28% | 22554m |
| 10:00 | 95% | 61% | 21% | 41% | 24135m |
| 11:00 | 65% | 54% | 39% | 60% | 22030m |
| 12:00 | 41% | 46% | 57% | 78% | 19924m |
| 13:00 | 39% | 38% | 75% | 97% | 17819m |
| 14:00 | 39% | 30% | 80% | 98% | 19480m |
| 15:00 | 53% | 21% | 86% | 99% | 21141m |
| 16:00 | 53% | 13% | 92% | 100% | 22803m |
| 17:00 | 60% | 13% | 92% | 100% | 23247m |
| 18:00 | 60% | 14% | 92% | 100% | 23691m |
| 19:00 | 60% | 15% | 92% | 100% | 24135m |
What does Cloud Drama Score mean?
Inputs that drive the scoreThis derived score summarizes multiple raw weather signals. The table below shows the supporting inputs hour by hour, so you can see what's pushing the score up or down.
| Time Asia/Bangkok | Air Pressure hPa | High Clouds % | Mid-Level Clouds % | Precipitation Chance % | Relative Humidity % | Solar Elevation ° | Total Cloud Coverage % | Wind Gusts m/s | Wind Speed m/s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed, Jul 8
Sunrise 05:26
Sunset 18:52 | |||||||||
| 21:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 49% | 84% | 50% | 99% | -26° | 84% | 0.82m/s | 0.31m/s |
| 22:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 33% | 95% | 43% | 98% | -35° | 95% | 0.81m/s | 0.43m/s |
| 23:00 ☾ | 863hPa | 94% | 100% | 49% | 99% | -42° | 100% | 1.1m/s | 0.66m/s |
| Thu, Jul 9
Sunrise 05:26
Sunset 18:52 | |||||||||
| 24:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 14% | 88% | 55% | 99% | -45° | 93% | 1.1m/s | 0.51m/s |
| 01:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 79% | 48% | 61% | 99% | -44° | 82% | 1.1m/s | 0.61m/s |
| 02:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 96% | 77% | 72% | 99% | -38° | 99% | 1.2m/s | 0.64m/s |
| 03:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 82% | 100% | 83% | 99% | -29° | 100% | 1.2m/s | 0.56m/s |
| 04:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 93% | 66% | 94% | 99% | -18° | 100% | 1m/s | 0.62m/s |
| 05:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 14% | 100% | 96% | 100% | -6.4° | 100% | 1.1m/s | 0.59m/s |
| 06:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 4% | 95% | 98% | 99% | 6.3° | 96% | 1.1m/s | 0.56m/s |
| 07:00 | 862hPa | 3% | 82% | 100% | 99% | 19° | 87% | 1.2m/s | 0.87m/s |
| 08:00 | 862hPa | 5% | 78% | 100% | 98% | 33° | 92% | 1.4m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 09:00 | 863hPa | 7% | 56% | 100% | 95% | 46° | 75% | 1.4m/s | 1.2m/s |
| 10:00 | 862hPa | 18% | 76% | 100% | 96% | 60° | 85% | 1.8m/s | 1.6m/s |
| 11:00 | 862hPa | 5% | 61% | 100% | 97% | 74° | 79% | 1.9m/s | 1.6m/s |
| 12:00 | 862hPa | 6% | 30% | 100% | 95% | 88° | 71% | 2.2m/s | 1.9m/s |
| 13:00 | 861hPa | 6% | 13% | 100% | 94% | 78° | 65% | 2.5m/s | 1.9m/s |
| 14:00 | 860hPa | 6% | 62% | 89% | 92% | 65° | 80% | 2.5m/s | 1.9m/s |
| 15:00 | 860hPa | 5% | 48% | 78% | 94% | 51° | 58% | 2.3m/s | 1.8m/s |
| 16:00 | 860hPa | 5% | 10% | 67% | 90% | 37° | 50% | 2.2m/s | 1.7m/s |
| 17:00 | 860hPa | 6% | 5% | 68% | 86% | 24° | 53% | 2.3m/s | 1.7m/s |
| 18:00 | 860hPa | 5% | 5% | 68% | 92% | 11° | 36% | 2.4m/s | 1.5m/s |
| 19:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 5% | 5% | 68% | 99% | -2.2° | 41% | 1.7m/s | 1.2m/s |
| 20:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 34% | 5% | 54% | 99% | -15° | 52% | 1.3m/s | 0.79m/s |
| 21:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 98% | 21% | 40% | 99% | -26° | 98% | 1.4m/s | 0.63m/s |
| 22:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 100% | 20% | 26% | 99% | -35° | 100% | 1.3m/s | 0.67m/s |
| 23:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 79% | 9% | 26% | 99% | -42° | 86% | 1.3m/s | 0.71m/s |
| Fri, Jul 10
Sunrise 05:27
Sunset 18:52 | |||||||||
| 24:00 ☾ | 862hPa | 85% | 5% | 27% | 99% | -45° | 95% | 1.3m/s | 0.75m/s |
| 01:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 100% | 17% | 27% | 100% | -44° | 100% | 1.5m/s | 0.96m/s |
| 02:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 14% | 27% | 100% | -38° | 100% | 1.7m/s | 1m/s |
| 03:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 21% | 26% | 100% | -29° | 100% | 1.7m/s | 1m/s |
| 04:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 48% | 26% | 100% | -18° | 100% | 1.8m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 05:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 35% | 36% | 100% | -6.4° | 100% | 2m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 06:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 30% | 46% | 100% | 6.3° | 100% | 1.9m/s | 1.2m/s |
| 07:00 | 861hPa | 95% | 20% | 56% | 99% | 19° | 100% | 1.8m/s | 1.2m/s |
| 08:00 | 861hPa | 100% | 8% | 64% | 99% | 33° | 100% | 1.9m/s | 1.4m/s |
| 09:00 | 861hPa | 100% | 9% | 71% | 99% | 46° | 100% | 1.9m/s | 1.4m/s |
| 10:00 | 861hPa | 100% | 7% | 79% | 99% | 60° | 100% | 2m/s | 1.6m/s |
| 11:00 | 861hPa | 100% | 5% | 82% | 98% | 74° | 100% | 2m/s | 1.6m/s |
| 12:00 | 860hPa | 100% | 5% | 85% | 98% | 88° | 100% | 1.9m/s | 1.6m/s |
| 13:00 | 860hPa | 85% | 5% | 88% | 97% | 78° | 95% | 2.1m/s | 1.6m/s |
| 14:00 | 859hPa | 36% | 6% | 75% | 96% | 65° | 85% | 2.3m/s | 1.9m/s |
| 15:00 | 859hPa | 73% | 14% | 62% | 95% | 51° | 87% | 2.3m/s | 2m/s |
| 16:00 | 859hPa | 100% | 14% | 49% | 97% | 37° | 100% | 2.3m/s | 1.9m/s |
| 17:00 | 859hPa | 100% | 5% | 53% | 98% | 24° | 100% | 2.2m/s | 1.7m/s |
| 18:00 | 859hPa | 100% | 5% | 57% | 99% | 11° | 100% | 2m/s | 1.4m/s |
| 19:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 5% | 62% | 100% | -2.2° | 100% | 1.7m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 20:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 9% | 54% | 100% | -15° | 100% | 1.4m/s | 0.93m/s |
| 21:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 100% | 29% | 46% | 100% | -26° | 100% | 1.4m/s | 0.76m/s |
| 22:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 100% | 8% | 38% | 100% | -35° | 100% | 1.5m/s | 0.88m/s |
| 23:00 ☾ | 861hPa | 95% | 24% | 38% | 100% | -42° | 97% | 1.1m/s | 0.58m/s |
| Sat, Jul 11
Sunrise 05:27
Sunset 18:52 | |||||||||
| 24:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 8% | 37% | 100% | -45° | 100% | 1.3m/s | 0.75m/s |
| 01:00 ☾ | 860hPa | 100% | 5% | 37% | 100% | -44° | 100% | 1.4m/s | 0.81m/s |
| 02:00 ☾ | 889hPa | 67% | 5% | 34% | 86% | -38° | 69% | 1.5m/s | 0.85m/s |
| 03:00 ☾ | 919hPa | 35% | 5% | 31% | 72% | -29° | 38% | 1.5m/s | 0.89m/s |
| 04:00 ☾ | 949hPa | 2% | 5% | 28% | 58% | -18° | 7% | 1.6m/s | 0.93m/s |
| 05:00 ☾ | 948hPa | 2% | 5% | 46% | 54% | -6.5° | 12% | 1.6m/s | 0.87m/s |
| 06:00 ☾ | 946hPa | 2% | 5% | 64% | 51% | 6.2° | 17% | 1.5m/s | 0.81m/s |
| 07:00 | 945hPa | 2% | 5% | 82% | 48% | 19° | 23% | 1.4m/s | 0.75m/s |
| 08:00 | 945hPa | 15% | 10% | 84% | 49% | 33° | 37% | 1.6m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 09:00 | 944hPa | 28% | 16% | 86% | 51% | 46° | 52% | 1.7m/s | 1.4m/s |
| 10:00 | 944hPa | 41% | 21% | 88% | 53% | 60° | 67% | 1.8m/s | 1.8m/s |
| 11:00 | 944hPa | 60% | 39% | 91% | 61% | 74° | 77% | 1.7m/s | 1.5m/s |
| 12:00 | 945hPa | 78% | 57% | 93% | 69% | 88° | 87% | 1.6m/s | 1.2m/s |
| 13:00 | 945hPa | 97% | 75% | 96% | 77% | 78° | 97% | 1.4m/s | 0.95m/s |
| 14:00 | 946hPa | 98% | 80% | 91% | 83% | 65° | 98% | 1.6m/s | 1m/s |
| 15:00 | 947hPa | 99% | 86% | 86% | 90% | 51° | 99% | 1.8m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 16:00 | 948hPa | 100% | 92% | 82% | 97% | 37° | 100% | 1.9m/s | 1.3m/s |
| 17:00 | 947hPa | 100% | 92% | 86% | 97% | 24° | 100% | 1.7m/s | 1.2m/s |
| 18:00 | 947hPa | 100% | 92% | 91% | 97% | 11° | 100% | 1.4m/s | 1.1m/s |
| 19:00 ☾ | 947hPa | 100% | 92% | 96% | 98% | -2.3° | 100% | 1.1m/s | 1m/s |
| 20:00 ☾ | 946hPa | 99% | 86% | 89% | 97% | -15° | 100% | 1.2m/s | 0.99m/s |
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