On May 24, 2021, Bengaluru witnessed a rare Sun halo. The Sun was surrounded by a circular rainbow creating a stunning design in the sky. This was quite rare yet beautiful, and there is so much Science or Physics, to be specific, behind this. Truly, nature can be such a blend of magic, beauty, and science. The Sun halo was visible in the clear sky for over an hour, as reported by India Today. The colors of the rainbow looked heavenly as it covered the Sun, leading to a flood of photos on social media. People took to clicking pictures, and uploading and other states were satisfied and astonished with those shared pictures.
The reason behind the Sun Halo:
The main scientific reason behind such a beautiful formation is dispersion. As the white light passed through the hexagonal ice crystals found in the upper level of the clouds, it formed a ring of twenty-two degrees around the sun, reflecting all the colors of the VIBGYOR. This is a common formation around the sun and the moon when the ice crystals are hexagonal, as informed by the University of Illinois at the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana in the USA.
Dispersion explained in detail:
The crystals in the clouds help in the reflection, refraction, and splitting of the white light as it enters different angles with each ray of light. These together result in the circular rainbow formation. The view also depends on the orientation of the crystals with the eyes of those trying to view them. In the case of the recent holo, the prediction says that each crystal was hit by two light rays which got refracted to end up giving the formation finally. The angle of refraction was calculated as 22 degrees. When seen around the moon, the halos are pretty colorless since the light of the moon is the indirect light from the Sun while the Sun is the ultimate power source of light, letting the proper bendings and the refraction. Thus is phenomenon was quite rare but beautiful in all senses.