People in Hyderabad were treated to a rare 22 degree Sun Halo in Hyderabad. The sky marvel impressed the populace as they rushed to social media platforms and uploaded different pictures of the phenomenon. The rainbow-coloured rings, encircling the Sun, were a sight to behold. So, let’s discuss what is this Sun Halo and how is it formed?

What is Sun Halo and how is it formed?

The perceptible phenomenon, Sun Halo is a result of ice crystals present in the atmosphere which appears to cover the sun when refracted by sunlight.

The unusual and rare occurrence of a 22-degree ring takes place due to the dispersion of light. White light passes through ice crystals that are found in upper-level cirrus clouds. This results in the halo to have different colours, similar to that of a rainbow.

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Millions of ice crystals are present in clouds which – refract, split and even reflect the light – to give an impression of a circular rainbow ring. During the process, light undergoes two different refraction. Once, when it passes through ice crystals and the second when it exits.

During the two phases, the bending depends on the diameter of the ice crystal and the two refractions tends to bend it by 22 degrees from its original point, thereby, giving it the name of a ’22-degree ring’.

According to the University of Illinois, “The halo is a ring of light 22-degrees from the Sun or Moon and is the most common type of halo observed and formed by hexagonal ice crystals.”

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People have taken to various social media platforms to share the picturesque event.

The rare phenomenon observed in Telangana is not the first instance. The previous year, similar rings were spotted in Tamil Nadu’s Rameswaram as well.