Clear, sunny and Moon Rings
Good morning Augusta.
This morning it is partly cloudy. High of 77F. Winds less than 5 mph.
Tonight it will be mostly cloudy, then overcast with a chance of rain. Fog
overnight. Low of 59F. Winds less than 5 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
The readings from my own instruments are:
The humidity is 81% with a Dew Point of 61.0ºF and a wind chill of 66.8ºF.
The temperature is 66.8ºF.
We have Northeast winds between 1.0 MPH and 1.5 MPH.
Our Barometric pressure is 29.89 HPA 1012.1 and steady with a weather
graphic indicating clouds.
The UV rating is 1 out of 16, sunset will be at 7:48 PM with Moon Rise at
11:42 a.m. and the moon phase is waxing crescent.
For the pilots out there, Raw Metar readings are:
METAR KAUG 121053Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 14/13 A2999 RMK AO2 SLP153
T01440128
Visibility is 10.0 miles/16.1 kilometers with yet another really great
ceiling, only a few puff ball clouds here and there.
We've hadno rain here in the past 24 hours.
Since the nights are nice this time of year, I thought that some intormation
about Moon Rings would be of interest.
The moon can produce interesting optical effects when conditions are right.
The most common of which are moon rings, moon bows, which are similar to
rainbows, moon dogs and moon pillars. A rainbow is produced when sunlight is
refracted through water droplets - A similar effect is produced when moon
light refracts through ice crystals.
The ring around the Moon is caused by the refraction of Moonlight (which of
course is reflected sunlight) from ice crystals in the upper atmosphere. The
shape of the ice crystals results in a focusing of the light into a ring.
Since the ice crystals typically have the same shape, namely a hexagonal
shape, the Moon ring is almost always the same size.
Less typical are the halos that may be produced by different angles in the
crystals. They can create halos with an angle of 46 degrees.
Moon Ring Weather Folklore
Folklore has it that a ring around the moon signifies bad weather is coming,
and in many cases this may be true. So how can rings around the moon be a
predictor of weather to come? The ice crystals that cover the halo signify
high altitude, thin cirrus clouds that normally precede a warm front by one
or two days. Typically, a warm front will be associated with a low pressure
system which is commonly referred to as a storm.
It is believed that the number of stars within a moon halo indicate the
number days before bad weather will arrive. Give it a try the next time you
observe a moon halo.
Rings Around The Sun - The same phenomena that causes lunar halos can also
be observed around the sun.
NOTICE: Never look at or photograph the sun directly.
Anatomy of a Moon Halo
The ring that appears around the moon arises from light passing through
six-sided ice crystals high in the atmosphere. These ice crystals refract,
or bend, light in the same manner that a camera lens bends light. The ring
has a diameter of 22° , and sometimes, if you are lucky, it is also possible
to detect a second ring, 44° diameter. Thin high cirrus clouds lofting at
20,000 feet or more contain tiny ice crystals that originate from the
freezing of super cooled water droplets. These crystals behave like jewels
refracting and reflecting in different directions.
Cloud crystals are varieties of hexagonal prisms, (6 sides) and range in
shapes from long columns to thin plate-like shapes that have different face
sizes.
Moon Dogs
Moon dogs are the paler version of sun dogs: bursts of light often in reds
and blues that appear on both sides of the moon. Both phenomena are the work
of almost invisible clouds that reside in the atmosphere where commercial
airliners cruise, at about 30,000 feet. The clouds are composed largely of
ice crystals, known as diamond dust. The official name for a moon dog is a
paraselene if seen at 22 degrees. If the image is at 90, 120 or 140 degrees
then it's known as a parantiselene.
This morning it is partly cloudy. High of 77F. Winds less than 5 mph.
Tonight it will be mostly cloudy, then overcast with a chance of rain. Fog
overnight. Low of 59F. Winds less than 5 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
The readings from my own instruments are:
The humidity is 81% with a Dew Point of 61.0ºF and a wind chill of 66.8ºF.
The temperature is 66.8ºF.
We have Northeast winds between 1.0 MPH and 1.5 MPH.
Our Barometric pressure is 29.89 HPA 1012.1 and steady with a weather
graphic indicating clouds.
The UV rating is 1 out of 16, sunset will be at 7:48 PM with Moon Rise at
11:42 a.m. and the moon phase is waxing crescent.
For the pilots out there, Raw Metar readings are:
METAR KAUG 121053Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 14/13 A2999 RMK AO2 SLP153
T01440128
Visibility is 10.0 miles/16.1 kilometers with yet another really great
ceiling, only a few puff ball clouds here and there.
We've hadno rain here in the past 24 hours.
Since the nights are nice this time of year, I thought that some intormation
about Moon Rings would be of interest.
The moon can produce interesting optical effects when conditions are right.
The most common of which are moon rings, moon bows, which are similar to
rainbows, moon dogs and moon pillars. A rainbow is produced when sunlight is
refracted through water droplets - A similar effect is produced when moon
light refracts through ice crystals.
The ring around the Moon is caused by the refraction of Moonlight (which of
course is reflected sunlight) from ice crystals in the upper atmosphere. The
shape of the ice crystals results in a focusing of the light into a ring.
Since the ice crystals typically have the same shape, namely a hexagonal
shape, the Moon ring is almost always the same size.
Less typical are the halos that may be produced by different angles in the
crystals. They can create halos with an angle of 46 degrees.
Moon Ring Weather Folklore
Folklore has it that a ring around the moon signifies bad weather is coming,
and in many cases this may be true. So how can rings around the moon be a
predictor of weather to come? The ice crystals that cover the halo signify
high altitude, thin cirrus clouds that normally precede a warm front by one
or two days. Typically, a warm front will be associated with a low pressure
system which is commonly referred to as a storm.
It is believed that the number of stars within a moon halo indicate the
number days before bad weather will arrive. Give it a try the next time you
observe a moon halo.
Rings Around The Sun - The same phenomena that causes lunar halos can also
be observed around the sun.
NOTICE: Never look at or photograph the sun directly.
Anatomy of a Moon Halo
The ring that appears around the moon arises from light passing through
six-sided ice crystals high in the atmosphere. These ice crystals refract,
or bend, light in the same manner that a camera lens bends light. The ring
has a diameter of 22° , and sometimes, if you are lucky, it is also possible
to detect a second ring, 44° diameter. Thin high cirrus clouds lofting at
20,000 feet or more contain tiny ice crystals that originate from the
freezing of super cooled water droplets. These crystals behave like jewels
refracting and reflecting in different directions.
Cloud crystals are varieties of hexagonal prisms, (6 sides) and range in
shapes from long columns to thin plate-like shapes that have different face
sizes.
Moon Dogs
Moon dogs are the paler version of sun dogs: bursts of light often in reds
and blues that appear on both sides of the moon. Both phenomena are the work
of almost invisible clouds that reside in the atmosphere where commercial
airliners cruise, at about 30,000 feet. The clouds are composed largely of
ice crystals, known as diamond dust. The official name for a moon dog is a
paraselene if seen at 22 degrees. If the image is at 90, 120 or 140 degrees
then it's known as a parantiselene.
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