Noctilucent clouds at the Pontsteiger in Amsterdam by Jeroen de Jongh Photography

About "Noctilucent clouds at the Pontsteiger in Amsterdam"

by Jeroen de Jongh Photography

About the artwork

The Pontsteiger building, also known as Pontsteiger or Miljoenengebouw, is a residential tower in the Dutch city of Amsterdam. The building is part of the area development of the Houthavens, a former industrial area transformed into a modern residential and commercial centre. The residential complex is located on the IJ where the ferry to the NDSM site and Distelweg departs from the ferry landing at Tasmanstraat, built in 1957.

Although the building appears extremely angular, the plinth contains spaces with facades executed in flowing lines. On the 25th floor is a 1440 sq m penthouse. Construction of the 92-metre-high building began in February 2015; it is slated for final completion in 2019.

A symbol of modern urban development in Amsterdam, the Pontsteiger building combines innovative architecture with functional living spaces and sustainable design.

Noctilucent clouds are tenuous cloud-like phenomena in the Earth's upper atmosphere. They are the highest clouds in Earth's atmosphere, located in the mesosphere at an altitude of about 76 to 85 km. They consist of ice crystals and are visible from the ground only during astronomical twilight. They are most often observed during the summer months from latitudes between ± 50° and ± 70°. Too dim to be seen in daylight, they are visible only when the observer and the lower layers of the atmosphere are in the Earth's shadow, but while these very high clouds are still in sunlight.