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Moonbow or moon halo - which was visible last November when I posted the alert, Moonbow - maybe tonight? I thought it was a moonbow. Linda posted some good questions about moonbows and halos that made me wonder if I was mistaken. I was mistaken! So I did some research and found out that we should have been looking for a moon halo, not a moonbow.
To understand moonbows and halos, you need to know about sunlight, since the light from the moon is reflected sunlight. Sunlight is really made up of all the colors that the human eye can see. When sunlight shines through a water droplet, such as a raindrop, the light is scattered into its individual colors. That is what makes a rainbow colorful. The best way to see a rainbow is to stand with your back to the sun. If there are raindrops in the air opposite where the sun is located, you will see a rainbow. When the moon is full or near full on a rainy night, a night-time "rainbow" is possible. This kind of rainbow is called a moonbow. Rain drops scatter the moonlight into its individual colors in the same way that sunlight is scattered during the day. If you stand with the moon to your back, there is a chance you will see a moonbow in the area opposite from where the moon is located. Moonbows are not as common as rainbows. They are not as bright, either. One observer remarked that the colors look like pastel shades rather than the brighter colors we see in rainbows. They are definitely dimmer than those in a daytime rainbow. Moonbow A moon halo is a ring of light surrounding the moon. The halo is caused by light from the moon passing through ice crystals in high thin clouds. Usually, the light is reflected rather than scattered, which causes the ring to appear white. Sometimes, the light shining through the ice crystals is scattered and the rings are then colored. Often there is a bright white area immediately surrounding the moon that is edged with a colored ring. At other times, there is another larger ring outside of the first one. Whether colored or white, the rings form a halo, not a moonbow. Moon Halo Next time the moon is full or almost full and it's raining or misting, perhaps you will be lucky enough to see a moonbow. If it's not raining, look for a halo around the moon. Go To Page: 1 2
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