Halos

click for large pic
Halos are bright rings and arcs around the the Sun or the Moon

Halos are created by refraction and reflection of  the light from the Sun or the Moon in small hexagonal crystals of ice in cirrus clouds and ice fog. Most halos fall into two categories, those associated with crystal faces inclined at 60°, 60° prism, and those formed by refraction between perpendicular faces. The colors usually visible in halos are red orange and yellow. The most common halo is the small halo, a colored arc around the Sun or the Moon with a radius of 22°. It's created by light refraction in column shaped ice crystals. If the light refracts between perpendicular crystal faces, the rarer big halo can be created, a colored arc around the Sun or the Moon with a radius of  46°. By simple or multiple reflections  in conjunction with the light's refraction many other halo phenomena can appear. I will try to explain them on these pages.

Ice crystals.

 

 

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