Weird ring around the moon

hi has anyone noticed the gigantic ring around the moon tonight? my mom said shes seen smaller ones and that usually means a storm is coming but shes never seen one this big. anyways, if anyone has any ideas as to what it means please say so. thanks


aw

I don´t know if it has any relevance, but I think Collie-fornia is about to get some stormy weather. A big "spiral" is heading there now. Check out this satellite-loop.

www.goes.noaa.gov...

Check out the website below, they explain a lot of aptmospheric phenomenon like the halo you're describing.
www.spaceweather.com...

They also post sunspot and solar flare warnings, as well as real time solar wind data if you're interested.

Scroll down the page and check out the link for the solar and heliospheric observatory, they have phenomenal images and video, most of it only an hour or so old.

Hope that helps.

I believe that ring is fairly normal, depending on where you are in the world. i think it's called a gibbus (sp?) moon. Either waxing or waning depending on the phase but it happens during both.

I can't remember what causes it but I remember it as normal, something about hot and cold air or something it was earth science which was a looonngggg time ago.

SPiderj

Halos are wonderful I can stair at them all night, or day.
Sun Halos some times make it look like there is an extra sun.

Halos most often appear when there is a thin layer of cloud above.

Originally posted by AmericanWerewolf
hi has anyone noticed the gigantic ring around the moon tonight? my mom said shes seen smaller ones and that usually means a storm is coming but shes never seen one this big. anyways, if anyone has any ideas as to what it means please say so. thanks

That's because halos are caused by high level clouds and often those are in front of weather fronts.
(cirrostratus clouds consisting from ice crystals)

22 degree ring halo is one of the most common forms.






Here's what to expect around sun.
www.polarimage.fi...
www.weather-photography.com...

[edit on 21-2-2005 by E_T]

Man I have never seen anything like that That is cool I want to see one.

I have seen the Moon turn reddish a few time though, not sure of the name of that but I call it a blood moon .

[edit on 21-2-2005 by ShadowXIX]

In the past year I've only seen one halo around the sun. It was a light snowy day, but it was still sunny.
I am going to have to start carrying my camera around with me.

Originally posted by ShadowXIX
That is cool I want to see one.

I have seen the Moon turn reddish a few time though, not sure of the name of that but I call it a blood moon .

Moon turns red at time of lunar eclipse... and when it goes to full shadow more precisely.

Here's other photo taken ~8 hours before previous.


These are much easier to see with eyes than photograph because of eye's better dynamic range... also sunglasses can help much. Just block sun with hand if there's no better object for that.

Also it's generally advisable to always look to sky when going outside.
And remember to do it always despite where you are to maximise changes of seeing halos... and to get reputation of being weird.
(checking sky every couple minutes helps in that... and in seeing of halos of course, some of them can last only few minutes)



In good circumstances there could be lot of them.


Here's good site from different halos.
www.sundog.clara.co.uk...

Umbrax, better make sure camera has full manual mode, automatic mode doesn't work well with these.
Time from winter to spring is generally best time of year for seeing halos, at least here in Finland.

yeah that pic of the moon with the ring was exactly what i saw last night

Where Im from the are called Dog Moons. My papaw, may he rest in peace, would say if there was a Dog Moon out then wet weather was headed in. My Papaw was a farmer, so any moisure for the crops was a good thing. He never saw it as an omen. They are quite beautiful.

[edit on 2/21/05 by Kidfinger]

Originally posted by Hellmutt
I don´t know if it has any relevance, but I think Collie-fornia is about to get some stormy weather. A big "spiral" is heading there now. Check out this satellite-loop.
www.goes.noaa.gov...

Yes, there was a storm. Far from where you live? Might explain the halo...

Wierd rings are created because there is glass in the sky.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

The enlarged version you saw may be the effect of a higher than normal layer of moisture or the droplets were larger as described in the link on WyrdeOnes reply. Why a higher layer would cause the larger effect is because of the angle of refraction in the droplets and the reception of light into your eyes related to focal length and the distance from you.

I've also seen the inverse of this from a plane with the sun, where the sun reflects off the clouds below.