Thanks to a couple of our readers who sent in images of last night’s moon… they write:
“Hey guys, we just saw the most awesome….HUGE circle around the moon (It’s so big, I couldn’t get it all in the picture even by laying on the ground)…they are not the best pics because, well, it’s freaking cold outside and my hands were shaking. It was eerie but one of the most awesome things I’ve ever seen. Wanted to share, hope you can see them.
Thanks,
Wendy Curvin
Pell City, Alabama”
“Hey guys…
I noticed the ring around the moon tonight. I took these on the Miles College North Campus (the old Lloyd Nolan Hospital) which was the darkest place I could find….What causes the Ring?
Matthew Romei”
The ring is caused by high thin cirrus clouds, which are ice crystals at around 25,000 feet. 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.
