Tag: Setting

At a Glance

A halo can add a little mystery and beauty to the scene, or it can be an eerie and foreboding omen for the superstitious. The sky is dim with a filter of high clouds, and your character looks up to find that a thin band of light has graced the sun or moon.

How It Works

The 22° or circular halo is an optical phenomenon that causes a ring of light to appear around the sun or moon, with the sky inside the halo appearing to be darker than the sky outside of it. This ring can be white, or prismatic in color with the inner edge showing red and then progressing to blue toward the outer edge. Like diamond dust, it is caused by hexagonal ice crystals—this time high in the atmosphere instead of at ground level—reflecting and refracting sunlight or moonlight. Said ice crystals can be suspended in the atmosphere, or they can be from cirrus or cirrostratus clouds.

Before we continue, a quick note on the degrees deal you’ve been seeing. Angular distance is used to measure distances between objects in the sky and the size of said objects. The 22° in the 22° halo refers to the halo’s size—a little smaller than the width of an outstretched hand held at arm’s length—while degrees mentioned with regards to the position of the sun or moon refer to where they are in their arc. Zenith position is 90° and the horizon is 0°, with the halfway point between the two being 45°.

At times the 22° halo will appear with a circumscribed halo surrounding it, which can give it the appearance of an enormous eye. On top of just straight-up looking uncanny(and beautiful), this kind of halo has some fun fantasy possibilities, such as being a representation for the eye of a god or some other cosmic entity.

It’s important to note, however, that a circumscribed halo will only have an eye-like appearance along certain portions of the sun or moon’s arc. When nearing the zenith position(starting around an elevation of 70°), the circumscribed halo will become a circle and merge with the 22° halo, intensifying its color. It is between 70° and 50° that it maintains an oval shape and the eye-like appearance is apparent on its own, while sufficiently tall objects such as forests, mountains, or buildings are needed to cover the drooping lobes of the circumscribed halo between 50° and 32° in order to maintain the illusion of an eye. Below 32° the circumscribed halo will split into upper and lower tangent arcs. This site provides a simulator that gives a good visual of what the circumscribed halo looks like along the sun or moon’s arc.

Another companion to the 22° halo is the sun dog, where a pair of false suns appear on either side of the sun along the halo’s edge. This display is most easily visible when the sun is near the horizon and it can occur anywhere in the world and during any season.

Yet another potential accompaniment to the 22° halo is the light pillar, pictured above along with the sun dog and parahelic arc. While light pillar is the general name for this phenomenon, it is specifically called a sun pillar or solar pillar when it has the sun as its light source.

Words for Describing It

Neutral

Nouns

• Halo
• Inner edge (sharp and distinct, with a red color to it)
• Moon ring
• Nimbus
• Outer edge (blue-tinged, fading)
• Ring
• Sun dog
• Winter halo (if the moon is the light source)

Adjectives

• Multicolored
• Pale
• Prismatic
• Rainbow
• Slender
• Slight
• Slim
• Thin
• White

Verbs

• Drift
• Encircle
• Flare (sun dog)
• Float
• Gaze (with circumscribed halo)
• Hang
• Hover
• Reflect
• Refract
• Shimmer
• Shine
• Watch (with circumscribed halo)

Interactions

• Clouds (low clouds can obscure parts of the halo or the light source)
• Light source
  • Sun
  • Moon

Metaphor

• Eye (with circumscribed halo)

Example

“High clouds rolled in, creating a faint halo around the sun.”

Positive

Nouns

• Crown
• Promise

Adjectives

• Beautiful
• Brilliant
• Dainty
• Dazzling
• Delicate
• Fine
• Flawless
• Gleam (sun dog)
• Opalescent
• Opaline
• Perfect
• Radiant
• Vibrant

Verbs

• Blaze (sun dog)
• Gleam
• Grace
• Promise

Example

“A halo crowned the sun as it climbed to its zenith, its prismatic ring shining against the pale sky behind it.”

Negative

Nouns

• Omen
• Portent
• Warning

Adjectives

• Apathetic
• Baleful
• Cold
• Dim
• Dispassionate
• Fragile
• Ghostly
• Hollow
• Illusory
• Impassive
• Indifferent
• Phantom
• Spectral
• Uncanny
• Unearthly
• Unfeeling
• Washed-out

Verbs

• Foretell
• Glare (with circumscribed halo)
• Glower (with circumscribed halo)
• Judge
• Loom

Example

“An enormous eye loomed behind the eastern peak, with the moon as its stark, staring pupil. It watched, cold and indifferent, as they made their way through the darkened valley.”

Associated Phenomena

• 46° halo
• Circumhorizontal arc
• Circumzenithal arc
• Cirrostratus clouds
• Cirrus clouds
• Diamond dust
• Light pillars
• Parahelic circle
• Sun dogs
• Supralateral arc
• Upper tangent arc

I highly recommend that you do some research on halos yourself, as there are some absolutely incredible photos and footage to see of this phenomenon. And as you’re going about your business outside, maybe keep an eye out when there are high clouds overhead.

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