Rainbow Arc Around glory
Taken by Geoff Chester on November 23, 2012 @
Arlington, Virginia, USA
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Camera Used: LG Electronics LG-VN271
Exposure Time: Unavailable
Aperture: Unavailable
ISO: Unavailable
Date Taken: 2012:11:24 11:27:05
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Details:
Heres an interesting example of atmospheric optics. Im sure many of you have seen the glory, the bright halo that surrounds the shadow of the plane youre flying in thats cast on a cloud deck below, but you can also see it in more everyday pursuits. I was out riding my bike yesterday when I saw an interesting variation on this...a rainbow arc surrounding the glory around my head. Heres a pic from my cellphone camera. You can see the rainbow arc to the right. Interestingly this wasnt visible when my shadow was projected onto a light concrete wall; it was only seen on the pavement on the trail itself. I think it was caused by tiny sand grains (i.e. quartz crystals) filling the spaces between the aggregate pebbles in the macadam surface and preferentially refracting the sunlight into a 22-degree halo, just as ice crystals do when you see a ring around the Sun. Aint Nature grand?
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