I was sent this photo from Terri King who was traveling by airplane. This shadow of the plane was surrounded by what appeared to be a circular rainbow. Terri was bummed that she had the window seat and missed the view of the ground below, but then described this as “the coolest thing” she has ever seen. What Terri saw and captured was a phenomenon called a Glory.
A Glory is also know as an anti corona or Pilot’s Bow. It is rather common for plane travelers or even from a hot air balloon or tall building. With the sun on one side, it casts a large shadow on the clouds below. The light refracts and breaks into the colors of the rainbow, always in the same order. Red on the outside, then orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet on the inside. There are often a few concentric circus, and if you look closely you can see two in this photo.
This is actually partly due to another phenomenon called a Mountain Spectre, where the sun can create an enlarged shadow on a distant cloud formation. The origin is Brocken spectre, the tallest peak in the Harz mountain range in Germany. Since it is a misty location, this is above the clouds and can produce these shadows for hikers. Due to the moving clouds, the shadow moves as well. Since both are based on the optics of the sun being opposite the observer, the shadow ends up on the middle of the circular ‘rainbow’. This is very cool, but more common than you might imagine for those that frequent high altitudes with a clouds below.
If you would like to see more interesting photos and stories, check these out:
Rainbow in Fells Point was seen by this dog
Solar halo seen today and other rainbows in the sky
Big WOOF! Top sun dog photos barking over Maryland on Friday
Upside down rainbow: Circumzenithal arc in the sky
Rainbow Video Time Lapse and Top 10 Pics From April 20
Rainbow Collection Around Baltimore: Storms Then Peaceful End To April
Hole in the cloud: Fallstreak over Maryland December 4th
Awesome wave cloud video: Undulatus Asperatus
Lightning time lapse video and photos over Baltimore you should see
30 Storm Photos From June 1: Lightning, clouds, flooding, and rainbow
Tsunami Wave Clouds Over Maryland March 11: Photos and video
24 top storm cloud and lightning photos of weather 2014 year in review
Check Out The Full Collection Of FITF Shirts And Snow Sticks
Please share your thoughts, best weather pics/video, or just keep in touch via social media
- Facebook: Justin Berk, Meteorologist
- Twitter: @JustinWeather
- Instagram: justinweather
Get the award winning Kid Weather App I made with my oldest son and support our love for science, weather, and technology. Our 3 year anniversary of the release and our contribution to STEM education is this November. It has been downloaded in 60 countries, and works in both temperature scales. With your support we can expand on the fun introduction to science and real weather.