Sundogs: mock suns or parhelia

WW2010
University of Illinois

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Sundogs mock suns or parhelia

Sundogs, also known as mock suns or "parhelia", are a pair of brightly colored spots, one on either side of the sun.

[Image: a real sundog (55K)]
Photograph by: Rauber

Sundogs form as sunlight is refracted by hexagonal plate-like ice crystals with diameters larger than 30 micrometers and their flat faces horizontally oriented.

Terms for using data resources. CD-ROM available.
Credits and Acknowledgments for WW2010.
Department of Atmospheric Sciences (DAS) at
the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.