Optical Phenomena Volume III
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Optical Phenomena Volume III? Where are Volumes I and II? Ah…… they were disguised as Halos And Rainbows Volume I and II. Once Hygge made the remark that the former title did not cover all. He was right, so from now on I consider that issue to be solved.
Halos And Rainbows Volume II ended with the applicable title ‘At Loose Ends’ by Keelin. Very nice. Do I mistake or is that a part of the CZA with its bright and distinct colors you captured in ‘At Loose Ends’ Keelin? I love the play of light in these cirrus wisps.
So from now on besides halos and rainbows, also crepescular rays, iridescence, nacreous, noctilucent and whatever has to do with optics. And that makes me think of the incredible pictures of aurora borealis by Don. Optics for sure and enchanting even in black and white as Don proofed. I look forward to the pictures anyone likes to share in this topic.
To emphasize the meaning of he change of title: a start with ‘just’ some iridescence.
Not Able To Hide
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A splendid solution and excellent introduction, Hans! And a lovely image to launch us all into this optic topic. So come out, come out, wherever you are, all wonders of light phenomena. No need to be camera shy.
Below, a moment that caught me by surprise as I was about to enter my local gym. A reflection in the tinted glass doorway stopped me in my tracks. Needless to say, exercise was postponed while I turned to capture the source of wonderland colors.
Reflection in tinted glass doorwayThe real deal, but with contrast tweaked to tone down the sun’s blinding radiance.PS: And yes, Hans, I think it may have been a part of CZA in ‘At Loose Ends’ (which also caused a delay that day in getting INTO the gym).
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Anti-crepuscular rays. Before I knew about there existence I captured this scenery in Italy (Gargano) at the end of the day in the spring of 2012. The sun was not that low already. I noticed the converging beams of light falling through the clouds. I never understood it until I got familiar with the optical phenomena a few years later and found the explanation on atoptics. Nevertheless most examples are captured at the moment of sunset in far less clouded skies so it still took some time to conclude these must be anti-crepuscular. It is my first and only example of this wonderful phenomenon.
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Very interesting and beautiful picture, Hans. I have been looking out for this phenomenon. So far no luck.
There is another phenom that I notice, maybe related. The sky is red/pink on the opposite side of the sunset or sunrise. Not much at 90 degrees. When I search for anticrepuscular, I only get “anticrepuscular rays”. How about anticrepuscular light.
Here is one shot. Notice the very clear sky.
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George I think I found the answer to your question about the pinks in the east: Anti-twilight arch or “Belt of Venus”.
Beautiful halo you captured! You wont regret subscribing to LR. I use it since this summer and I am really happy with the possibilities. You can improve the picture in a subtle way without doing violence to reality, but also manipulate it more vigorously and explore creativity.
Just quoting you with next sundog.
Wink-wink
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All beauties above, Hans and George! Especially love those iridescence images, Hans, with a hint of ocean in both of them. Mesmerizing!
And George, the branches of the tree add a joyful feeling to your halo image, as if it’s reaching up in celebration. Which is what I do when I see such wonders — even when it’s just on the tip of a passing cloud wing.
Wingtip Sundog -
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A nice link to share from atoptics: Very rare Swedish halos. Al the halos are named.
The same occasion on The Halo Vault: Complex halo display.
Wow!
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Keelin, Hans, I like your sun dogs. Here is something from the sun, but not sure what. Maybe a UTA? This is about 10 minutes after sunset. The sun has set right below the color patch.
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George, nice picture of a sunset. It is also my first thought that the color patch is a UTA. One can simulate the different appearances of the UTA with changing the height of the sun on atoptics (and also meteoros.de), but unfortunately the simulations don’t support a height below zero degrees, so I could not really verify the possibility. Still it is verifiable to see a UTA when the sun is at – or just under – the horizon. Very nice.
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To continue on the sun dogs I posted on the new year’s day clouds thread, I was in the Yellowknife airport when I noticed it. I had a very poor viewing angle and I kept moving from window to window to get a better one. (The shot that I have posted I took from the tarmac as I was walking to board the plane. I only had a few seconds.) In the shots from inside, earlier, I notice something that is a bit of a puzzle for me. There is a sun and there is a bright spot below it (subsun?). And the sun dog is at the same level as the subsun. Also the parhelic circle is below the sun. I could not find anything like this on the atoptics site, maybe I did not search deep enough.
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And further, this shot possibly captured a 44 degree parhelion, or at least a piece of the 46 degree halo. Look at the right side at the horizon level, about the same distance as from the sun to the sun dog. There is faint patch of color next to an object that raises above the tree line (perhaps the airport radar).
Opinions?
horizon level.
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Great capture of the sundogs, George. A 44 degree parhelion is rare, so congrats. Unfortunately I don´t have an answer to your question about the height of the sundog that seems to be not at the same level as the sun itself. On the other hand I am sure you don´t see a subsun. A subsun must be just as far under the horizon as the sun is above. That is why you can only spot a subsun from a plane or from a mountain top. When the brighter spot on your picture is the sun, you might see a lower pillar beneath the sun (I think it is there), but that does not explain the extension to the left and right of the bright spot (like the parhelic) unless that spot is the sun. In that case the brighter spot above the sun is the puzzle.
I suppose you wanted to have more time to make pictures entering the plane. It is a lovely extra to your fantastic aurora experiences you already described elsewhere. I hope to see more of it!
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George, your sundog and/or ? images above are truly stunning!
And Hans, your Moonhalo brings to mind lyrics of a lovely song by Greg Brown…
And there’s a ring around the moon; long, long time ’til day
Play me one more tune; please don’t go awaywhile fingers of the tree branch seems to hold the glow delicately in place.
Below, Mr. Crow stays for an encore by that other orb in the sky.
Halo Performance -
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Like the crow I would also like an encore Keelin and George. Very niche hairy halo Keelin, and great sun pillar George! This makes me think that – when watching an optical phenomenon – I am always a bit disappointed when it vanishes and find myself afterwards trying to remember what it was like. But then there are still the pictures in the case the camera was at hand. The lyrics you quoted Keelin say it just as it is.
Scattered Sundog
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Stay, Stay! But unfortunately they don´t Keelin. very nice composition with this tailed doggy in the starring role.
For something else I would shout: Come! It is the season that nacreous clouds can be observed over here although it is a very rare phenomenon because it is more often seen in more northern regions. I spotted nacreous in february 2016 for the first and last time. There was first a colorful appearance which I mistook for iridescence at that time but I also spotted one formation a bit later the same day and it does not look like the nacreous with all the colors. What struck me is the resemblance to a picture someone took a bit more south and got published on atoptics. Look for the seventh picture (taken above Delft, Netherlands) on the link: Two types PSC explained
On this link the difference between the two types of PSC´s are explained and their relationship with the ozone in the atmosphere. The seventh picture shows PSC type I (being just red). My picture above Haarlem shows the same formation (I think).
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How wildly lucky, Hans, to have had a sighting of nacreous clouds! I do not believe it will be your last. And thank you for the link to atopics explanation of these fabulous formations. Indeed, your lovely image above seems to match the description of type 1 PSC. Did that make your toes wiggle?
I do wish I could see further north to catch sight of nacreous, but for now, a little webworker has me stuck in place.
Halo Weaver -
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Thank you, Hans! Like you and likely like others, I cannot “like” recent gallery images either. No doubt the glitch will soon be worked out by those who know how to fix.
Meanwhile below, another image from Colorado skies. Can you see the fellow who has closed an eye, savoring the radiant arc of halo that lights his cheek?
Basking In The Glow -
Basking in the glow is fantastic Keelin. Love it. I certainly can see the fellow with the light on his cheeks.
Somewhat later his nose was coloring. He must have had a good time!
Nosy About The Pictures Of Him -
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Hello George,
Thanks. I took the picture at midnight and that time answers already a bit of your first question. Not many people notice them or it must be the ones that are looking after them. The media give them some attention when their presence is predicted but I have to explain everybody what they are.
Norway in August they can be spotted for sure and Atoptics.co.uk says they might show up from mid May until mid August . So fingers crossed for you. I hope you will spot some.
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Hans, I went through a number of shots. I saw three of yours, clearly visible noctilucents, and verified them. Very good shots, though not as good as what you posted above, obviously taken with a real camera. I have seen a few others, but they are really too dark to tell if there was anything. Too bad, people probably saw noctilucents, but the phone camera cannot capture them. Perhaps you can check them and help out.
Regarding the time of your above spotting (around midnight). Checking the timeanddate.com sun position for Amsterdam (probaby not very different for the rest of the Netherlands) you were in between Nautical and astronomical twilight. When I will be in Norway in August, at a much higher latitude, around Lofoten and Senja, I will be in nautical twilight in August. It does not even reach astronomical twilight. So I suppose the sun is at about the same hight (depth?) below the horizon as it was for you.
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Iridescense
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/look-out-for-a-vision-in-the-cloud-q9qm52bzs
The last para says ‘….but wearing polarised sunglasses helps to reveal them.’
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What a gorgeous image is your Streaming Lights, Hans. Like a fading memory I would wish to never lose. I wonder, do you see a similarity to Gerhard Richter’s blurred portraits? Your image has the same haunting, evocative feel for me.
The image below is from a series that included the Halo/CHA recently shown on the Gallery. But in this original, the car window was up at that moment and caught an unfortunate reflection. Alas, cropping was required to eliminate the distraction.
Audience For An Arc -
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George I have been looking for a CHA all days since the sun comes high enough from mid May, but I found no right crystals in place yet to produce one. I don’t give up!
Keelin, I forgot to react on your comparison with Gerhard Richter’s blurred portraits. I did not know about him and had to google a bit to find out. So, thanks for pointing out. And I see what you mean: haunting, disturbed and also disturbing.
Here is another one taken almost at the same moment.
Foreboding
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The color is so subtle in Foreboding, Hans. It is a very intriguing photo. And I’m glad you had your own watchful eye on your next posted image. A gorgeous shot!
Below shows only a section of the most vivid 22˚ halo I’ve seen to date. It captured my attention for quite some time as the clouds danced around it.
Halo Cloud Dance -
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Unfortunately I have not seen a CHA this summer except for one very shy and modest appearance, hardly visible. The sun has already lowered its altitude for some time this summer. I must go back to the archives for a colorful fragment of a CHA.
P.S.: Very nice 22 degrees halo with upper tangent arc on the gallery Keelin!
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Well here is certainly a party going on here, to start with your party-poppers Keelin. Great smiles also. The last two make me wonder what you spotted. Assuming the pictures are rotated on their left side I suppose these are the same smiles as before?
I hope sincerely you are going well in California despite the fire disasters over there?
I have been a bit absent but yesterday I had the opportunity to spot some nice colorful sundogs. This one is not dangerous but still ..
A Harmless Ball Of Fire
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Thank you for well wishes, Hans. We are fortunate once again to be in a sweet, rare spot where PG&E has not cut power and flames still at a distance. Air quality is bad, but we cannot complain when others are in dicier situations. Your Harmless Ball Of Fire is one I can appreciate! A beautiful capture of color.
You have been missed and it’s a delight to see your return—a splendid reason for party poppers! As for that smile, I’m not sure why it posted twice, but yes, it is from the same event as the one you can see on the Color thread. That image shows the true orientation, but from a slightly different location.
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Thank you Keelin. Good to know you are OK. I hope for you and a l of people over there that the fires will be controlled and end soon.
Since Monday I do have quite a series of sundogs. They change shape every second and go and return with the winds. Here is one that also should could easily fit in the clouds-that-look-like-things thread. I have made a collage of threes phases.
A SunDog Crawling Out Of The Shadow. Or Is It A Chamelion?
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Congrats Michael. It makes one´s day seeing these phenomena. It gives Heartglow, like Keelin spotted above.
On the first you spotted the rare suncave Parry and the UTA. I can see them both since they just don´t coincide yet. On the website meteoros.de (note that it is in German language) you can simulate the height of the sun and see the effect on the appearance of the arc.
According to what I tried the sun must have been at approximately 35 degrees high when you took the picture.
I am waiting for new occasions over here. It is a long time since I saw something exciting except for some recent spectacular sundogs (above). Less rare but also exciting for its brightness and colors. Here is another one from the series I took a week ago.
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Its amazing to me how the Parry Arc behaves as the sun rises in degrees from horizon. Crowley’s site shows the changes up to 30 degrees. There was more color but as Crowley says theres no camera that can capture the colors the eye see with the parry arc and UTA. The PA lasted as long as the patch of cirrus traveled across the sun. The parhelic circle formed after the PA .
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Yes Keelin I did a happy dance, while watching sundogs come and go and change shape. I suppose Michael did also some happy moves catching a Parry arc and a parhelic. And I agree with the quote from Crowley Michael. It is always a bit disappointing what the camera does after having seen and captured a bright colorful halo. Lucky enough there is LR with which one can make the picture more like it really was. Without overdoing it will come close.
And yes these animations are wonderful on atoptics. It is the software of Les Cowley that is broadly used I noticed and it enables these animations on meteoros.de as well. It is fun to play with these animations and it is also very instructive as to the way these halos appear and develop depending on the height of the sun.
Unfortunately I don’t have my archive with me this week So just text for now.
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Happy Solstice!
I have an optical phenom a bit different. I went to the beach early morning to catch the sunrise and started taking pictures with my telephoto. There was this strange object and when I zoomed in I saw it was floating in the air:
It was quite cold and I read that these are the typical conditions for Fata Morgana. The object was not moving. It’s to big to be a helicopter. Ships usually line up in the ocean around there awaiting their turn to enter the New York harbor. There were a few other “flying” ones, tough not as colorful. Here is a copy a bit enlarged and enhanced.
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Thanks so much for sharing your Fata Morgana image, George, and helpful comments, Hans. I wasn’t familiar with this type of illusion at all, so spent a bit of time on atopics site.
Also, further above, another hovering delight. Lucky Hans, to see a UTA. And I love the Airborne Archimedes image!
Even further above (which requires I keep looking up and up), Michael brings us a beautiful halo.
Keeping eyes open here for something to share on the topic. Such magic is worth waiting for.
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Thank you Keelin! Yes the Aurora is something out of this world, actually literally, if you think of the origin. I plan to go chase it again.
I have a short video, not sure if I posted it to the forum before. It’s actually s slide show based on six or seven consecutive shots during the same Yelloknife trip, too few to make a time lapse. Hope you enjoy it. (As always with dark skie pictures, watch it in a dark environment.)
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As the sky was forecast to be clear on the morning of Christmas day, I woke up at 5am to go back to the beach to catch an old moon rise and a bit later perhaps the green flash of the sunrise. I got neither, but the fata morgana was still there and I caught an interesting sun coming out of the ocean. First the top comes out with a gap between it and the horizon, a floating top of the sun at the same height as the floating (in the air) ship on the right. Then the body and reflection unite. It looks like the sun is pulling itself out of the ocean while some of it, like a gooey fluid, is left behind. Finally it breaks free and the morgana reflection disappears. A few pics below. A time lapse video is on vimeo, but you will have to cut and paste the link in your browser.
vimeo.com/381431960
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Hello everyone, I have two photos here of parts or a parhelic circle (yes I saw the whole thing!). I could only take pictures of parts of the circle because of the enormity of the phenomena. I did take a video and I may share that later if you’d like of most of the ring. There is also a sun dog and a 22° Halo in both images. This is the only time I have ever seen this phenomena because it is very rare. Hope you enjoy!
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Hello everyone, I’d like to move this thread to the top of the Forum with this post of a link to an absolutely fantastic moon halo++. It was posted on Twitter. I don’t think Twitter requires you to sign up to see postings (like FB).
https://twitter.com/BrentMckean501/status/1228106368718008322/photo/1
@Hans – I think you will love it. -
Thanks for sharing George. Can’t believe my eyes seeing this halo exposure. I recognize a number of halos but what I see within the 22 degrees halo is a puzzle to me. There are several options with halos due to pyramidical crystals (so called odd halos) but the ones on the picture are exuberantly colorful. Love it indeed!
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Second and better thought: inside the 22 degrees halo it must be a corona like the title of the picture states. The only thing that puzzles me is that the corona is so large. The smaller the water droplets that cause the corona the larger the corona. That’s for sure, but I did not found information yet about a corona this size. The beauty of it is unmatched I think.
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Reflection in tinted glass doorway
The real deal, but with contrast tweaked to tone down the sun’s blinding radiance.
With A Cheshire Smile
Wingtip Sundog
horizon level.
Halo Performance
(Slightly enhanced.)
Stay, Stay!
Halo Weaver
Another One On The Wing
Ochtend Kroning
Basking In The Glow
Iridescent Dreams
Audience For An Arc
Halo Cloud Dance
A Delicate Hold
Celebration
Party Poppers
Held Spellbound
Heart Aglow
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