It is an unnerving experience to be looking down at the clouds.  In this view the color of the sky seems exaggerated, but it is our proximity to space that gives it the dark tint: there is less air above us at this elevation.  The clouds we are looking down upon take on the reflected color of the sky which makes a stark contrast to the rust-red landscape of the volcano’s summit.  The island of Hawaii can be seen in the distance, apparently floating among the thunder cells building up around it.