Why does the sun have a red ring around the edge????
Aug 18, 2013 16:03:36 #
July 29, 2008
Q & A; Ring Around the Sun
By C. CLAIBORNE RAY
Q.What caused the weird sunset I observed from Cape Cod last month? A well-defined, orange-red, glowing ring surrounded the sun.
A. What you saw is a variation of the optical phenomena that can appear when light interacts with the air and the substances in the air, said Todd Miner, a meteorologist at Pennsylvania State University. ''This falls under the category of halo,'' he said.
More common phenomena include sundogs, two bright spots on either side of the sun, and sun pillars, which emanate upward or even downward from the disk of the sun. All are caused by the bending of light rays before they meet the observer's eyes.
Like a halo around the moon, a circular structure around the sun would normally be generated mainly by small ice crystals in the atmosphere. Depending on the size, shape and orientation of the particles, the light may be refracted into all the colors of the rainbow or a single color, like red.
At sunset, the pathway of light through the atmospheric particles and the air molecules themselves is much longer than at midday, leading to a general filtering of the light so that the blue wavelengths become scattered, Mr. Miner said. This leaves mostly the red and orange you observed. Also, it is probable that the ice particles were really tiny, leading to the sharply defined edges of both the sun and the red ring around it that you observed.
Readers are invited to submit questions by mail to Question, Science Times, The New York Times, 620 8th Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018, or by e-mail to question@nytimes.com. Questions of general interest will be answered in this column, but requests for medical advice cannot be honored and unpublished letters cannot be answered individually.
DRAWING (DRAWING BY VICTORIA ROBERTS)
Q & A; Ring Around the Sun
By C. CLAIBORNE RAY
Q.What caused the weird sunset I observed from Cape Cod last month? A well-defined, orange-red, glowing ring surrounded the sun.
A. What you saw is a variation of the optical phenomena that can appear when light interacts with the air and the substances in the air, said Todd Miner, a meteorologist at Pennsylvania State University. ''This falls under the category of halo,'' he said.
More common phenomena include sundogs, two bright spots on either side of the sun, and sun pillars, which emanate upward or even downward from the disk of the sun. All are caused by the bending of light rays before they meet the observer's eyes.
Like a halo around the moon, a circular structure around the sun would normally be generated mainly by small ice crystals in the atmosphere. Depending on the size, shape and orientation of the particles, the light may be refracted into all the colors of the rainbow or a single color, like red.
At sunset, the pathway of light through the atmospheric particles and the air molecules themselves is much longer than at midday, leading to a general filtering of the light so that the blue wavelengths become scattered, Mr. Miner said. This leaves mostly the red and orange you observed. Also, it is probable that the ice particles were really tiny, leading to the sharply defined edges of both the sun and the red ring around it that you observed.
Readers are invited to submit questions by mail to Question, Science Times, The New York Times, 620 8th Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018, or by e-mail to question@nytimes.com. Questions of general interest will be answered in this column, but requests for medical advice cannot be honored and unpublished letters cannot be answered individually.
DRAWING (DRAWING BY VICTORIA ROBERTS)
Aug 27, 2013 13:27:18 #
I believe, and I am not an meteorological expert, but that is atmospheric, not the Sun nor the camera. AS the sun starts to set the atmosphere that gets between you and the sun increases creating that orange affect that you do have when the sun is directly overhead. That's what I think the reason is. But all that matters to me is "Does the Image look good?"
Aug 27, 2013 13:36:33 #
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