Sundog at Christmas
Wed, 12/18/2019 - 5:16pm
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As temperatures struggled to stay above zero on Saturday, bright "sun dogs" were visible in the open areas. This photo was taken around 9 a.m. outside of Minneota. A sun dog, also known as a "mock sun", is an atmospheric optical phenomenon that consists of a bright spot to one or both sides of the sun.
Two sun dogs often flank the sun within a 22-degree halo. They are caused by the refraction of sunlight by ice crystals in the atmosphere. They are best seen when the sun is near the horizon. — Photo by Byron Higgin, Text by Scott Thoma.