Explanation: What happening above that volcano? Something very unusual -- a volcanic light pillar. More typically, light pillars are caused by sunlight and so appear as a bright column that extends upward above a rising or setting Sun. Alternatively, other light pillars -- some quite colorful -- have been recorded above street and house lights. This light pillar, though, was illuminated by the red light emitted by the glowing magma of an erupting volcano. The volcano is Italy's Mount Etna, and the featured image was captured with a single shot a few hours after sunset in mid-June. Freezing temperatures above the volcano's ash cloud created ice-crystals either in cirrus clouds high above the volcano -- or in condensed water vapor expelled by Mount Etna. These ice crystals -- mostly flat toward the ground but fluttering -- then reflected away light from the volcano's caldera.

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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (USRA)
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.

Publikacii s klyuchevymi slovami: light - atmosfernye yavleniya - vulkan Publikacii so slovami: light - atmosfernye yavleniya - vulkan
Sm. takzhe: STIV: siyayushaya reka nad Franciei Vulkan Vil'yarrika na fone neba Mlechnyi Put' nad goroi Etna Kak opredelit', chto svetitsya na nebe Luna i kol'ca iz dyma nad goroi Etna Stolby sveta nad Vnutrennei Mongoliei Yuvyaskulya na nebe Vse publikacii na tu zhe temu >>