Fiery rainbow - the secret of an unusual natural phenomenon

One of the unusual, fantastically beautiful and at the same time extremely rare phenomena of nature is a fiery rainbow. So scientists dubbed the atmospheric phenomenon - okologorizontalnuyu (or round-horizontal) arc, which appears against a background of light high-altitude clouds consisting of ice crystals. This atmospheric radiance arises spontaneously - unlike the usual rainbow, before the fire does not rain.

Factors of the appearance of a fiery rainbow in the sky

Rare lucky people on Earth manage to observe this unique natural phenomenon. How does a rainbow rainbow form and what is its forerunner? One of the main factors for the appearance of a circular-horizontal arc is the geographical location - the latitudes of the northern and southern hemispheres, located not more than 55 degrees from the equator. Another important condition scientists call the presence of cirrus clouds - whiskers of snow-white inhabitants of the upper layers of the troposphere, freely letting sunlight. Crystalline ice, from which cirrus clouds form , should take a horizontal position relative to the ground. The daylight is usually high in the sky, at a distance of 6,000 km and above.

Sophisticated Mother-Nature Fantasy

The magic of the appearance of a stunning color flicker in the sky is surprisingly simple. In the summer, the bright glow of cirrus clouds is caused by the refraction of the sun's rays. In order for a fiery rainbow to appear, the sun's rays should be oriented at an angle of 58 degrees with respect to the horizon. They penetrate the side wall of each ice crystal of a hexagonal shape and continue their way through its lower boundary. In chains consisting of frozen hexahedra, the sun's rays "run through" all the faces of the natural structure, up to the last ice, and "cut out" the fire. The peak brightness of this unusual natural phenomenon, according to meteorologists, can be observed when the sun shines on cirrus clouds at an angle of 68-69 degrees. This optical effect makes it possible to divide the light into spectral colors and visually obtain such an amazing phenomenon as a fiery rainbow. It can stretch for hundreds of square kilometers! Its halo is so large that the arc appears parallel to the horizon line.

Fiery rainbow: photo

Rarely do people manage to resist the temptation to make their own picture of an enchantingly beautiful and enchanting game of light. The chance to see this natural phenomenon in some American states: Idaho, New Jersey, Texas, in the cities of Houston and Los Angeles, is much higher, since the bright, high-lying sun in these places can be observed for over 700 hours! In European countries, suitable conditions last no more than 220-250 hours. A fiery rainbow in Russia is visible more often in the extreme south of the country. In the European part of our country and in most of the Siberian region, you can observe the bright glow of cirrus clouds only from a few mountains or with the help of binoculars from the top of a centuries-old pine.