Sunday, February 17, 2008

Unusual corona around the moon

In the evening of February 14, 2008, an orographic cloud similar to this one formed above a sea of clouds under the influence of foehn wind above Mt.Wendelstein (1838m) in the Bavarian Alps. In this orographic cloud, an corona appeared around the moon which was more intensive and larger than any corona I had seen before. 4 systems of rings were clearly visible. The intensitiy leads me to the conclusion that all water droplets in the cloud were of the same size.

As I had a position very close to the cloud, the corona was extraordinarily large. A comparision to the constellation of Orion shows that it had a diameter of more than 20°. Below its lower part, the corona turned into a faint pink and green iridescence, indicating that the droplets were smaller towards the rim of the cloud. And it was also interesting that the thin cloud as well as the corona did not show greater changes in intensity and shape for about 4 hours. They only dissolved when the foehn wind broke down and the clouds of a masked upper level cold front came up.

9 comments:

Harald Edens said...

What a magnificent corona! Thanks for sharing. With what camera did you photograph it?

Claudia Hinz said...

I used the Canon 400D, focal length: 18mm, exposure 20sec (ISO 400), f/4,5

It was very stormy, for this I couldn't use a tripod ... I protected the camera with a shirt and justified it with the by means of stones ... ;o)

Anonymous said...

That is, without doubt, the best capture of a most perfect corona anybody could ever hope to see! Wonderful!
You have got to have one of the best jobs in the world!

Anonymous said...

Dear Claudia,

Tim Herd has said most of all. As a physicist I only might add: your photo deserves a place on the cover of a few Optics textbooks.

Congrats and keep the goodies coming!

Elmar Schmidt

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wow amazing and on that day it's my birthday haha that would be a great gift, but there's a cientific explanation for this?
thanks for sharing.

Custom Home Detailing said...

It is not very common to see a corona like this around the moon. Very good picture. Good job.

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I do not know anything about its scientific side, but I know when I see something beautiful. This sure is one, thanks for the picture.