Halo by photographer Juan Miguel Castillo Navarro from Mexico. A halo is an optical phenomenon of nature. What does a circle around the moon mean?

light circles around the Moon, Sun

Alternative descriptions

Optical phenomenon in the atmosphere

A natural phenomenon thanks to which you can see “three” Suns at once

Light circles, arcs, pillars, spots observed around or near the disks of the Sun and Moon

Glowing ring around celestial bodies

Optical phenomenon

Light circles around the moon

Circles around the sun

Sun, circles

Circles around the Moon

False sun

Circles around the star

Optical phenomenon around the star

Halo around the sun

Lunar halo

Halo around the star

Lunar halo

. "halo" of the luminary

Lunar "rainbow"

. "corona" of the luminary

Solar halo

Halo around the Moon

Halo around the Sun

Rainbow rings around the moon

Atmospheric phenomenon

. "halo" of the luminary

Lunar halo to rhyme with lard

Solar or lunar halo

Circles, spots observed around or near the disks of the Sun or Moon

White or iridescent light circles observed around or near the disks of the Sun and Moon

. "Crown" luminary

. "Nimbus" luminary

. "Halo" of the luminary

. Northern Lights around the Moon

Circles around the Sun

Lunar "rainbow"

Lunar "halo"

Lunar halo in rhyme with pattern

Optical phenomenon around the star

A natural phenomenon thanks to which you can see “three” Suns at once

Wed. bent, a projectile for bending arches, rims and runners: a circle is cut out in solid beams or died as a furrow; the block, steamed in a steam oven, or underground, on which a large fire is laid out, is placed in the halo and wedged

My mother called, who is lying on the beach right now))) And she says, “I see a circle around the sun”))) I went outside, there the cirrus clouds had already covered the sun... I didn’t see...

I just recently read about it from [b])))

(Apparently the weather will worsen...)

Here:

Halo- this is the refraction and reflection of light in the ice crystals of the upper tier clouds; represent light or rainbow circles around the Sun or Moon (an example of a photograph of a lunar halo), separated from the luminary by a dark gap. Halos are often observed at the front of cyclones (in the cirrostratus clouds of their warm front) and can therefore serve as a sign of their approach.

Halo around the Sun in cirrostratus clouds

As a rule, halos appear as circles with a radius of 22 or 46 °, the centers of which coincide with the center of the solar (or lunar) disk. The circles are faintly colored in rainbow colors (red inside).
Halos are the surest sign of worsening weather. So, at the end of March 1988, calm, sunny spring weather settled in Moscow and the Moscow region. But one evening a halo was observed around the Moon; and the very next day the weather suddenly deteriorated.
From the book “Meteorology and Climatology” S.P. Khromov, M.A. Petrosyants: “In addition to the main halo forms, false suns are observed - slightly colored light spots on the same level with the Sun and at an angular distance from it also 22 or 46°. the main circles are sometimes joined by various tangent arcs to them.There are still unpainted vertical pillars passing through the solar disk, i.e., as if continuing it up and down, as well as an unpainted horizontal circle at the same level with the Sun.
Colored halos are explained by the refraction of light in the hexagonal prismatic crystals of ice clouds, uncolored (colorless) forms by the reflection of light from the faces of the crystals. The variety of halo shapes depends mainly on the types and movement of crystals, on the orientation of their axes in space, as well as on the height of the Sun. The 22° halo is caused by the refraction of light by the side faces of the crystals with a random orientation of their main axes in all directions. If the main axes have a predominantly vertical direction, then on both sides of the solar disk (also at a distance of 22°), instead of a light circle, two light spots appear - false suns.
The halo at 46° (and false suns at 46°) is caused by the refraction of light between the side faces and bases of the prisms, i.e. with a refractive angle of 90°.
The horizontal circle is due to the reflection of light from the side faces of vertically located crystals, and the solar column is due to the reflection of light from crystals located primarily horizontally.

In thin water clouds, consisting of small homogeneous drops (usually altocumulus clouds) and covering the disk of the luminary, due to diffraction, apparitions of the crowns. Crowns also appear in fog near artificial light sources. The main, and often the only part of the crown is a light circle of small radius, closely surrounding the disk of the luminary (or an artificial light source). The circle is mainly bluish in color and only on the outer edge is reddish. It is also called a halo. It may be surrounded by one or more additional rings of the same, but lighter color, not adjacent to the circle and to each other. Halo radius 1-5°. It is inversely proportional to the diameters of the droplets in the cloud, so it can be used to determine the size of the droplets in the clouds.
The crowns around small artificial light sources (compared to the disks of luminaries) have richer iridescent colors."

Folk signs associated with halo:
- After the appearance of fast-moving cirrus clouds, the sky is covered with a transparent (veil-like) layer of cirrostratus clouds. They are found in circles around the Sun or Moon (a sign of worsening weather).
- A halo is visible around the Sun or Moon (a sign of worsening weather).
- In winter - white crowns of large diameter around the Sun or Moon, as well as pillars near the Sun, or so-called false suns (a sign of continued frosty weather).
- The ring around the Moon is towards the wind (worsening weather).

Let us quote the book by V.A. Mezentsev “Religious superstitions and their harm” (Moscow, 1959). Here is what is written there about the phenomena described above: “For example, what a complex and rare in its shape halo was actually observed in the spring of 1928 in the city of Bely, Smolensk region. At about 8-9 o’clock in the morning on both sides of the Sun - to the right and to the left - there were two bright, rainbow-colored false suns are visible. They had short, slightly curved whitish tails. The real Sun was in the center of the luminous circle. In addition, several luminous arcs were visible in the sky. It was these arcs that were mistaken for curves in past centuries fiery swords hanging in the sky.
And on November 28, 1947, a complex halo around the Moon was observed in the city of Poltava. The moon was in the center of the light circle. New moons, or, as they are often called, paraselenes, were also visible on the circle to the right and left; the left paraselen was brighter and had a tail. Not the entire halo circle was visible. It was brightest in its upper part and on the left. At the top of the halo circle there was a bright tangent arc.

How can such extraordinary images be created in the air? What are the reasons for this interesting natural phenomenon? Studying the appearance of halos in the sky, scientists have long noticed that they occur when the Sun is covered with a white, shiny haze - a thin veil of high cirrus clouds. Such clouds float at an altitude of 6-8 kilometers above the ground and consist of tiny ice crystals, which most often have the shape of hexagonal columns or plates. Rising and falling in air currents, ice crystals, like a mirror, reflect or, like a prism, refract the sun's rays falling on them. At the same time, reflected rays from some crystals can enter our eyes. Then we observe various forms of halo. Here is one of these forms: a light horizontal circle appears in the sky, encircling the sky parallel to the horizon. Scientists conducted special experiments and found that such a circle arises due to the reflection of sunlight from the side faces of ice hexagonal crystals floating in the air in a vertical position. The rays of the Sun fall on such a crystal, are reflected from it, like from a mirror, and fall into our eyes. But our eyes cannot detect the bending of light rays, so we see the reflected image of the Sun not where it actually is, but on a straight line coming from the eyes, and the image will be visible at the same height above the horizon as real Sun. This phenomenon is similar to how we see the image of an electric light bulb in a mirror at the same time as the electric light bulb itself. There are a lot of such vertically floating mirror crystals in the air. They all reflect the sun's rays. The mirror images of the Sun that fall into our eyes from individual crystals merge, and we see a solid light circle parallel to the horizon. Or it happens like this: The sun has just gone below the horizon, and a light pillar suddenly appears in the dark evening sky. This play of light, as shown by special experiments, involves ice plates floating in the atmosphere in a horizontal position. The rays of the Sun, which has just gone beyond the horizon, fall on the oscillating lower edges of such plates, are reflected and fall into the eyes of the observer. When there are many such crystals in the air, the mirror images of the Sun that come into our eyes from individual ice plates merge into one, and we see a stretched, distorted image of the solar disk beyond recognition - a luminous pillar appears in the sky. Against the background of the evening dawn, it sometimes has a reddish color. Each of us has encountered a phenomenon similar to this more than once. Remember the solar or lunar “path” on the water. Here we see exactly the same distorted reflection of the Sun or Moon, only the role of a mirror is played not by ice crystals, but by the surface of the water. Have you ever seen a light rainbow circle surrounding the Sun? This is also one of the forms of halo. It has been established that this halo is formed in cases where there are many hexagonal ice crystals in the air that refract the sun's rays like a glass prism. We do not see most of these refracted rays; they are scattered in the air. But some crystals also send directed rays into our eyes. Such crystals are located in the sky in a circle around the Sun. They all seem illuminated to us, and in this place we see a light circle, slightly colored in rainbow tones. We do not always see one or another form of halo in full in the sky. For example, in winter, when there is severe frost, two spots of light appear on both sides of the Sun. These are parts of the halo circle. In another case, only the upper part of such a circle is visible - above the Sun. In the past, it was often mistaken for a luminous crown. The same thing happens with a horizontal circle passing through the Sun. Most often, only that part of it that is adjacent to the Sun is visible; then we see in the sky, as it were, two light tails stretching to the right and left of the Sun. It is not difficult to understand how luminous crosses appear in the air. From the Sun, which is low on the horizon or has already gone beyond the horizon, a long luminous pillar stretches upward. This pillar intersects with the part of the halo circle visible above the Sun, and a large luminous cross appears in the sky. Two crosses may appear. This happens when the vertical parts of the halo circle and parts of the horizontal circle adjacent to the Sun are visible in the sky; intersecting, they give two crosses on either side of the Sun. In other cases, instead of crosses, only luminous spots are visible here, close in size to the Sun. They are called false suns. This type of halo is usually observed when the Sun is low above the horizon. Specially conducted experiments show that the formation of false suns involves hexagonal crystals, which float in the air not randomly, but so that their axes are located predominantly vertically. In the northern regions, where a halo is generally observed much more often, loafing suns can be seen dozens of times a year. They are often so bright that they are as bright as the Sun itself. This is how science explains the diverse, mysterious phenomena of the halo and exposes religious superstitions. By studying various phenomena associated with the passage of light in the atmosphere, our scientists not only give them a scientifically correct, materialistic explanation, but also use the acquired knowledge for the development of science. Thus, observations of the crowns, which we talked about, help determine the size of ice crystals and water droplets from which various clouds are formed. Observations of crowns and halos also provide the opportunity for scientific weather prediction. So, if the crown that appears gradually decreases, precipitation can be expected. Increasing crowns, on the contrary, foreshadows the onset of dry, clear weather."

Weather research. Folk signs for determining the weather by the Moon.

Weather prediction using the Moon.

Folk signs that predict the weather using the moon.

Author: Frolova Natalia Alexandrovna
Purpose: this material will be of interest to teachers and educators when preparing for classes, observations, and conversations with children. Folk signs that predict the weather using the Moon are based on centuries-old wisdom and observation of the people. The state of the weather for different periods has long been determined by the planets and stars. The Moon in this regard is the most reliable helper of people.
Weather predictions associated with it have been passed down from generation to generation for many centuries.
Some signs HAVE received a scientific explanation.
Everyone will learn a lot of useful things from it. What awaits us; how to predict the weather for tomorrow, a week and even a month in advance...
Target: acquaintance with folk signs.
Tasks: cultivate interest and respect for folk wisdom and observation.
The night was shining. The garden was full of moonlight. were lying
Rays at our feet in a living room with no lights.
A. Fet.
Lately, we are increasingly paying attention to signs. There are a lot of them. There are also lunar signs. We will talk about them. Even in ancient times, people worshiped the moon and treated it with due respect. In this regard, many lunar signs arose.

If the summer, young Moon, (month) with sharp ends means clear weather, with blunt ends means rain.
If a circle appears around the MOON at a close distance, expect rain tomorrow, and if in winter there are two dull reddish rings - severe frosts.


The appearance of a foggy circle near the Moon means a blizzard.
If the Moon is in a dim haze, it means prolonged bad weather.












If the circle is red, then wind will certainly follow, and in winter extremely heavy snow should be expected. (The moon with a circle expanding and reddening is a big wind.)
If the Moon appears larger than usual in size and reddish in color, it means rain.
The pale color of the Moon is a sign of bad weather; in winter it promises heavy snowfall.
If the Moon is dazzlingly white, it means cold, and reddish, it means wind.
The appearance of a foggy circle near the Moon means a blizzard. If the Moon is in a dim haze, it means prolonged bad weather.
If during the full moon the Moon is light and clear in color, it means good weather, and if it is dark and pale, it means rain.
If the Moon is clear and steep in the summer, it means good weather, in winter it means cold weather.
If the disk of the MOON has a distorted SHAPE, it means a dry, partly cloudy day.
If during the full moon a closely spaced CIRCLE forms around the moon, it will rain at the end of the month.
If the weather is windy when the month is born, it will continue throughout the month.
If there is inclement weather on the fourth birthday of the Moon, it will continue throughout the next month.
If in summer the young Moon is curved less than usual, it means rain, and in winter it means snow for a month.
If the new Moon appears in windy weather, there will be wind for a month, and if it is washed by rain, there will be no bad weather.
If the young Moon appears “thick” and has a yellow color, it means damp weather, and a light and thin Moon means clear weather during the month.
If circles form close around the Moon, it means rain the next day (soon, but not for long); if it’s far away, it will rain in 1–3 days (not soon, but for a long time); there will be a blizzard in winter.
The moon, which has a clear circle around it, gradually expanding and disappearing again, portends clear weather;
If the Moon has two or more such circles, or only one, but foggy and unclear, then there will be frost;
If the circle is red, then wind will certainly follow, and in winter extremely heavy snow should be expected.
The moon with a circle expanding and reddening is a big wind.
The moon with a circle adjacent to it means rain is very late; with a circle removed, rain is close.
There are no circles around the young (new) month; if a circle appears around the Moon during the full moon, there will be bad weather towards the end of the month; if a circle appears during damage, there will be bad weather before the new moon.
If the sky begins to be covered with a film of clouds (“let the horses loose”) and the month is surrounded in a circle, it means bad weather.
Moon with ears (spots on both sides of the horizon) - to frost.
If the change of the Moon (the moon is born) occurs in the morning, the weather will be warm, and if in the evening, it will be cold.
Whatever the weather is like at the birth of the Moon, it will remain like this throughout the first half of the month; what the weather is like on a full moon, this will last the second half.
When the moon has horns upward, but the lower one is steep and the upper one is flat, then the first half of the month will be windy in summer and cold in winter;
If the upper horn is steep, the lower one is shallower, then the same sign applies to the second half of the month.
A month on the hooves means cold, on the back means warmth, rain or snow.
The new month is gentle - it rains all month.
After the birth of the Moon, seven days later there is a change in weather.
A clear steep-horned Moon in the summer - to the bucket, in the winter - to the cold.
Two dull reddish rings appeared around the Moon - before a strong frost.
If there is a ring around the Moon, the weather will be cold and harsh.

If there are two or more circles around the Moon, or only one, but foggy and unclear, then there will be frost.
If the circle around the Moon is large at first and then gradually decreases, then there will certainly be rain or wind; if the circle expands and then disappears, then wait for good weather.
If a circle forms close to the Moon, it means rain the next day; if it’s far away, in one, two, three days there will be a blizzard in winter.
If the Moon is in a large blue circle, then there will be a strong wind; if the Moon is surrounded by a small red circle, then there will be frost.
If a ring appears near the Moon and immediately disappears, the weather will deteriorate before morning.
The ring near the Moon is towards the wind; the moon in a reddish circle is also towards the wind; pale - to rain, to bad weather.
A reddish circle near the Moon, soon disappearing - towards the bucket; two circles or one dim one means frost.
The moon with a circle or with “ears” means frost.
A month in the blue means rain.
A month in a dim haze means prolonged bad weather.
A rainbow circle near the Moon - to winds and bad weather.
A bright circle near the Moon in clear weather foretells rain.
A foggy circle for about a month (in winter) means a blizzard.
During the full moon, a bright and clear month means good weather, a dark and pale month means rain.
If a circle appears around the moon during the full moon, there will be bad weather towards the end of the month.
If the Moon darkens as it approaches the horizon, expect rain.
If the month appears large and reddish, there will be rain; foggy - the weather will deteriorate; very white and shiny - it will be cold.
The greenish month is for rain.
The moon has turned red - wait for the wind to blow.
Before the rain, the Moon is cloudy or pale, but before the bucket it is clear and bright.
With the new Moon and its end, the weather changes: damp - dry, warm - frosty, cloudy - clear.
When there is a new moon, there is rain or snow, on the damage - too, the rest of the time - precipitation is random and rare during the full moon.
A dark month, bad weather during the new moon - at the end of the month it will rain like buckets.
If the Moon hangs in the sky with its horns down and its back up (last quarter), then it will be cloudy and stormy for a long time.
Whatever the weather is like during the Moon's detriment, it will be like this throughout the entire quarter.
During the transition (the end of the last quarter and the beginning of a new one) there is mostly bad weather.
Damage usually occurs when it rains.
Three days before the damage to the Moon - a change in weather.

Observation of a halo can serve as a local weather indicator. Halos are always observed in cirrostratus clouds, which are usually part of the warm front cloud system. Therefore, the appearance of a halo indicates the approach of a warm front.

• What weather changes should we expect due to the passage of a warm front? First of all, the decrease and thickening of clouds and the fall of precipitation: rain, snow or sleet, depending on the time of year.
  • In summer, in established sunny weather, the passage of a warm front, accompanied by low clouds and rain, is usually perceived as worsening weather.
  • in winter, in established frosty weather, the appearance of a halo portends decrease in frost, warming due to the decrease and thickening of clouds and the transition to precipitation.
• Due to the fact that the crowns are formed on smaller cloud elements (drops or crystals) than the halo, the following conclusions can be drawn.
  • If crowns were observed at first, then they disappeared and after some time a halo appeared, then this indicates the enlargement of cloud crystals and increasing the likelihood of precipitation.
  • On the contrary, if crowns appear after the halo, it means that the elements of the cloud are evaporating and decreasing in size. Hence, the likelihood of precipitation decreases.

Source: book by Zverev S.V. In the world of sunlight.

The content of the folk signs presented below may not coincide with the opinion of the author.

Folk signs

• A halo is visible around the Sun or Moon - a sign of worsening weather.
• A ring around the Moon means wind (worsening weather).
• If the crowns appear earlier and then are replaced by a halo, then the weather may worsen.
• If the halo precedes the crowns, then this can be considered a sign of improving weather.
• If in winter white crowns of large diameter appear around the sun or moon, as well as pillars near the sun, or so-called false suns, then this is a sign of continued frosty weather.
• There is an interesting weather sign in the US state of New Hampshire.
  If locals look at the sky at night and see a halo - a circle around the moon - they know a storm is coming soon. How many stars can be counted inside the halo - after so many days the storm will begin.
  Sources: A. Leokum. The Curious Book. New American Library, NY, 1978, p.17

"Myths", erroneous assumptions about haloes, incorrect names

• call diamond dust a halo. Confusion of concepts
• With light pillars and halos are different phenomena. Light pillar is one of the types of halo
• fire rainbow- name of the near-horizontal arc
• winter rainbow is the name of the halo. It is believed that the halo is visible only in winter :). Just look at this site to be convinced of the opposite
• Quote: “as the Republican Hydrometeorological Center (Moldova) assured, halo rings are safe for humans.”
• Crosses in the sky
  • At the intersection of the parhelic circle (its fragments on the sides of the sun) with a halo with a radius of 22 or 46°, crosses are formed
  • The cross, in the center of which is the sun, appears when the pillars of light intersect with the parhelic circle.
  • When crossing light pillars above/below the sun with 22 halo

Superstitions, historical facts related to halo, famous observations

Various halo phenomena have been observed in the sky for several thousand years. Arcs and pillars of light were called fire swords of angels, bloody swords, crosses (the intersection of the parhelium and the small halo, a pillar of light and the upper part of the small halo). In various archives you can find a lot of evidence of halo observations. I tried to collect the most interesting observations on this page.

A Word about Igor's Regiment

As soon as Prince Igor set out with his army on May 1, 1185, a solar eclipse occurred. “Then Igor looked at the bright sun and saw that it covered him with the darkness of the soldiers.” But the proud princes did not turn their horses. The first battle with the Polovtsians was victorious. And then they fought for another three days. The outnumbered Cumans began to overpower the Russians. And then four suns appeared in the sky. “Black clouds are coming from the sea, they want to cover four suns ... There will be great thunder...” The spirit of the soldiers fell, the Russian army was all killed, and Igor was captured.

Ivan groznyj

A story about how the Grand Duke of Moscow perceived what he saw in the sky: “... With a trembling hand, Tsar Ivan pulled back the curtain. He looked up at the sky with frightened eyes. His face was distorted with horror: in the sky, in the dark heights, he froze cruciform heavenly sign ...
Leaning on his staff, the king went out onto the Red Porch to observe the wondrous vision that the queen had just told him about.
For a long time he silently looked at the sky, dotted with a dense scattering of stars, and at this mysterious cross, vaguely visible in the heavenly depths, and suddenly, staggering from weakness... whispered:
- This is the sign of my death. Here it is..."

Napoleon

After the fall of Napoleon in France, they watched as bright spot , which reminded many of the emperor’s triangular hat. And people regarded this as a sign of his return from exile, from the island of St. Helena.

Lowitz

The St. Petersburg scientist T. Lovitz had a chance to see and describe an interesting and funny halo (one of the types of halo was later named after him).
On one summer day in 1790, he sketched the picture that opened before him:
two rainbow circles shone around the sun - one larger, the other smaller;
bright semi-arcs, similar to wide horns, adjoined them above and below.
The sun and rainbow circles were crossed by a white stripe, parallel to the horizon, encircling the sky. At the intersection of this stripe with a small rainbow circle, two false suns shone; their sides facing the sun were red, and from the opposite sides stretched long luminous tails. Three similar spots were visible against the sun - on the white stripe. The sixth, very bright, spot glittered on a small rainbow circle above the sun. All this remained in the sky for about five hours.

Halo from the ancient Russian chronicle

“That same summer there was a sign in the Sun. Protect yourself from the sun like circles,” the Russian chronicle reported in 1224.
A miniature was also included with the entry. And the chronicler monk, it seems, himself witnessed the phenomenon. The drawing clearly shows the sun with “circles” and four crosses around it.
Note that there are dozens of images of this kind in the chronicles of different countries. if not hundreds.

“In 7293 (that is, in 1785) a sign appeared in the famous city of Yaroslavl, from the morning hours there was a middle circle until noon with three suns, and with them at noon the second circle appeared, In it there was a cross with a crown, and the sun was gloomy and under appeared in a large circle like a rainbow..."

Based on the description and picture, it can be assumed that the author observed a small halo with parhelia, then the upper and lower tangent arcs (crown) or Parry arcs appeared, light pillars that often look like crosshairs.

Six-winged seraph

Seraphim, from Hebrew - burning, luminous, flaming. In other meanings - burning, fiery. In the mythology of Judaism and Christianity, the name “seraphim” designated angels especially close to God. Probably their first and only description, from which numerous imitations came, is contained in the Book of the Old Testament of the prophet Isaiah:

“...each of them has six wings. Each covered his face with two. He covered his legs with two. Two - I flew..."

One of the seraphim cleanses the prophet's lips by touching them with a burning coal, which he takes with tongs from the altar. The geometry of the seraphim figure, depicted, for example, by Theophanes the Greek, is quite peculiar, but upon deep examination, it turns out to be similar to a complex halo, taken in its upper quarter (a light column, a small halo, an upper tangent arc, a large halo and a zenith arc).

The picture shows a fragment of a fresco by Theophan the Greek, 1378, Novgorod, Church of the Transfiguration on Ilyin.

The appearance of circles, pillars, and “additional moons” around the Moon was of great interest. In the Middle Ages, circles around the Moon were considered harbingers of various disasters - from catastrophes to fatal diseases. Of course, these “extra moons” do not pose any danger, but they do guarantee a change in the weather.

What do the circles in the sky around the Moon mean?

This is a well-known optical phenomenon, which is due to the fact that there are a lot of tiny ice crystals in the atmosphere that reflect light rays. Bouncing off atmospheric ice, the light creates reflections of the real Moon, which appear as large spots of light to the right or left, and very rarely - in all four directions from the Moon itself.

In order for such a phenomenon to occur, the atmosphere must be transparent, the night cloudless and very frosty. Typically, the formation of false moons is associated with anticyclonic weather, that is, cold, stable weather. The appearance of light pillars or stripes near the Moon is explained in a similar way.

How scientists explain the lunar circles of the Moon

Circles around the Moon, or halos, are caused by the collision of atmospheric fronts when stable weather begins to change. For the formation of such circles, it is necessary that light cirrus clouds form in the sky, which serve as a sign of the appearance of large masses of warm air in the high layers of the atmosphere.

In winter, the appearance of circles brings warming and snowfall, and in summer it is not always associated with warming, but precipitation will be guaranteed. Multi-colored rings around the Moon always foreshadow precipitation (this phenomenon is possible only with strong densification of the atmosphere). In summer it will rain, in winter it will snow.

A change in weather in this case will occur in a day or a day and a half. It is the thickening of the atmosphere and the appearance of clouds in the sky that give rise to this beautiful optical phenomenon.

Halos are found to occur with thin crystalline clouds located at an altitude of more than 7 km, and crowns - with thin clouds of small droplet structure located at an altitude of 2 to 5 km. The atmosphere thickens within 12 to 36 hours.

And the Moon with “ears”, that is, two pillars of light next to each other, can only form when there are ice crystals in the atmosphere, so it portends frost.

Folk signs associated with circles around the Moon

In the old days, close attention was paid to the halo. And, as a rule, such phenomena were considered not the best omen. Circles could foreshadow pestilence, famine, disease, the death of kingdoms and the death of political figures. But such circles could bring much more trouble to ordinary people - peasants and artisans, which is why most signs associated with lunar circles predict climate change.

In the Russian collection “Kolyadnik” (18th century text, translation from Polish), which was widely circulated in Rus', the following weather changes are indicated:

• “As soon as the month of January is surrounded, there will be great rains.
• If the month of February is surrounded, there will be little life.
• If the month of April is surrounded, there will be a lot of fruit.
• If the month of July is surrounded, death will be a beast.
• If the month of August is surrounded, there will be a lot of fish and honey.
• If the month of September is surrounded, there will be little rain.
• If the month of October is surrounded, it will be dry and there will be little rain.
• If the month of November is surrounded, there will be a lot of life.”