Halo Around Sun Was Opening Act For Super Blood Moon
KPIX 5 Morning Weather Anchor Roberta Gonzales answers the questions you never get to ask on-air.
Q: Hey Roberta, did you see the super moon lunar eclipse? Brian Cain; Hayward
A: Yes I did! But did YOU see yesterday's "halo" around the sun?
I was running in the San Jose Rock and Roll Marathon yesterday when I looked up (probably gasping for air!) and saw the prettiest halo around the sun! Did you see it?
Officially, scientists refer to a ring or circle of light around the sun or moon, a halo. What makes a halo around the sun or moon?
Well, there's an old weather saying, "ring around the moon means rain soon". That's not necessarily true. The true part is, high cirrus clouds often come before a storm. And if you look at my photos, those wispy looking clouds are cirrus clouds. They are high and thin and usually located around 20,000 feet in elevation. The cool thing about cirrus clouds, is they contain millions and millions of ice crystals! A halo forms because of the refraction (splitting of light) and reflection (glints of light) from these ice crystals.
What I love about a halo is, because of the positioning of the ice crystals and an individual's positioning looking up, everyone sees a halo differently. So my halo yesterday was different than the one you probably saw. Just think about it, your own personal halo!
Please send weather questions, observations and photos to me, Gonzales@kpix.cbs.com and I look forward to hearing from you!
