DEHRADUN: Rare optical phenomenon ‘Sun Halo’ or 22-degree halo in which a rainbow appears around the Sun was visible in Dehradun skies on Sunday.
Bikram Singh, director of Meteorological Centre, Dehradun, said, “The phenomena occur due to refraction of sunlight in millions of hexagonal ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere. Our eyes see the colours reflected through these sting prism-like structures.”
As the phenomenon started getting noticed, residents of the city started clicking pictures and sharing them on various social media platforms. The pictures soon went viral.
“A beautiful Sun halo was today seen from Dehradun, a rare celestial phenomenon,” wrote a user on Twitter.
Another user wrote, “Sun Halo – In monsoon season. First in life view. #sunhalo #Haridwar #uttarakhand #KanwarYatra2022”
Meanwhile, the state MeT department has issued a yellow alert for rains for 10 districts – Dehradun, Tehri, Pauri, Uttarkashi, Nainital, Champawat, Bageshwar, Pithoragarh, Udham Singh Nagar and Almora. It also issued an orange alert for Nainital and Champawat.
Rains wreaked havoc across the hill state on Sunday throwing life out of gear as hundreds of roads got blocked due to rain-induced landslides.
Officials of the state government departments such as police, public works department and others said that efforts are on to clear the roads.