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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
A Cloud Shadow Sunrise
Explanation: What could cause a ray of dark? Such a ray was caught in spectacular fashion above the Florida Everglades two years ago. The cause is something surprisingly familiar: a shadow . The gold-tinged cloud near the horizon blocks sunlight from reflecting off air behind the cloud, making that column of air appear unusually dark . Cloud shadows can be thought of the inverse of the more commonly highlighted crepuscular rays , where sunlight pours though cloud holes. Another seemingly opposite phenomenon, a sun pillar , involves small ice crystals floating high in the atmosphere.
| Date | February 27, 2002 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit & Copyright: Kee Hinckley |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |