AP A sun halo appears behind a streetlight in Kolkata, on Monday.
On Monday morning, the city witnessed a beautiful natural phenomenon around 10.30 am when a bright halo formed a perfect circular ring around the sun.
The celestial wonder that lasted about an hour had the city enthralled. The ring remained bright till 11.30 am before slowly fading away.
Birla Planetarium director (research & academic) Debiprosad Duari said the phenomenon had been caused due to refraction of sunlight against a particular type of cloud formation. "Hexagon-shaped ice crystals are formed when water vapour in the cirrus clouds freezes at an altitude of 5-10 km. Sunlight passing through these crystals gets refracted by 22 degree, thereby causing the ring-like shape," he explained.
The ring that formed around the sun was a little reddish in the inside and bluish at the outer edges. The area within the ring was also slightly less bright compared to other parts of the sky. This happens because the sun's rays passing through these ice crystals in the cirrus clouds behaves like prisms and deflects the light by at least 22 degree. Scientists have shown that the geometry of the ring or halo is such that it's size is roughly 44 times the size of the sun.
Incidentally, this natural phenomenon can happen anywhere during the daytime if the sky is covered by cirrus clouds and the atmospheric conditions are right. "The formation of these rings do not suggest any particular type of atmospheric condition or have no effect on life and property," Duari clarified over and over again to frantic callers.
Source http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Kolkata-/Celestial-treat-enthrals-city/articleshow/6133232.cms
The celestial wonder that lasted about an hour had the city enthralled. The ring remained bright till 11.30 am before slowly fading away.
Birla Planetarium director (research & academic) Debiprosad Duari said the phenomenon had been caused due to refraction of sunlight against a particular type of cloud formation. "Hexagon-shaped ice crystals are formed when water vapour in the cirrus clouds freezes at an altitude of 5-10 km. Sunlight passing through these crystals gets refracted by 22 degree, thereby causing the ring-like shape," he explained.
The ring that formed around the sun was a little reddish in the inside and bluish at the outer edges. The area within the ring was also slightly less bright compared to other parts of the sky. This happens because the sun's rays passing through these ice crystals in the cirrus clouds behaves like prisms and deflects the light by at least 22 degree. Scientists have shown that the geometry of the ring or halo is such that it's size is roughly 44 times the size of the sun.
Incidentally, this natural phenomenon can happen anywhere during the daytime if the sky is covered by cirrus clouds and the atmospheric conditions are right. "The formation of these rings do not suggest any particular type of atmospheric condition or have no effect on life and property," Duari clarified over and over again to frantic callers.
Source http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Kolkata-/Celestial-treat-enthrals-city/articleshow/6133232.cms
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