 Icy Halo Around the Sun Haloes around the sun sometimes occur in cold areas when sunlight interacts with different types of ice crystals. Light is refracted (deflected) through crystals suspended in the atmosphere that act like tiny prisms. The haloes may look like a thin, white ring, but they are actually colored much like rainbows. They're just pale because of the low amount of ice crystals in the air (cold air doesn't hold much moisture).
These are caused by the way certain ice crystals fall - a portion of the crystals are shaped like flat hexagonal (six-sided) plates that tend to fall through the air with their flat side horizontal. This bends the light a certain way in relation to the viewer - giving the illusion of two extra suns... Too technical? Let's just say they look cool!
Click pictures for more information and credits. Library: Arctic, Cold/Cold Places Environment/Atmosphere Links: Haloes and Sun Dogs Arctic, Cold Places, Environment Guide to Arctic Sunrise & Sunset Arctic Maps & Weather Reports |
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DICTIONARY: Just "double-click" any unlinked word on this page for the definition from Merriam-Webster's Student Electronic Dictionary at Word Central. |
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ARCTIC LIBRARY & GLOSSARY: Check this section for an index of the rest of the things you really need to know about the Arctic. |
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ARCTIC MAPS & WEATHER REPORTS: Maps of the Northwest Passage, explorers' routes, iceberg sources, Nunavut, the Arctic by treeline, temperature... |
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ARCTIC LINKS: Even more information! Links to sites related to the Arctic and "Iceberg: the Story of the Throps and the Squallhoots". |
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GUIDE TO ARCTIC SUNRISE & SUNSET: How much sunlight or darkness is there in the Arctic on each day of the year? |
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