STUNNING snaps shared by NASA show an “Ice Halo” in an enchanting scene reminiscent of the Disney film Frozen.
In the pictures – taken in Bavaria, Germany – a church can be seen surrounded by glowing rings of light that illuminate the snow covered landscape.
The spectacle is so rare that some are saying it looks like Elsa the snow queen has been working her magic.
The halos can range in size and shape and are a rare phenomena caused by frozen water crystals in the air.
This image is particularly jaw-dropping as capturing multiple rings in one shot is no easy feat.
The idyllic winter scene was captured earlier this month by German photographer Bastian Werner, who was taking photos near the church.
Mr Werner posting his shot to his Instagram account where he called it “a perfect motif” and “very rare”.
He captioned the post: “Sprinting like a maniac through the deep snow when I noticed the ice fog at the end of our St Coleman shooting session.
“Good 60-70cm of snow was next to the chapel.
“I rarely rate 10/10 for my own photo, but it really doesn’t get any better.
“I have experienced so much this year, but I didn’t expect anything like this!”
On Wednesday, NASA selected the the photo for its Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) website, which uploads a fresh image for the public daily.
The space agency called it “one of the greatest spectacles” and described the science behind the formation of the “unusual sky arcs”.
Under cold enough temperatures – below 32°F or 0°C – water suspended in the air will freeze into ice, creating a faint fog.
These ice particles are not necessarily heavy enough to fall to the ground so they stay suspended in the air and can catch the sunlight.
The sunlight reflects and refracts –changes direction when it hits the crystals at an angle.
This results in an ice halo – an optical phenomenon that can range in shape from rings to arcs and even spots in the sky.
In the image, two prominent ice halos are visible – the 22-degree halo and the 46-degree halo, which is higher up.
Multiple arcs are also visible, including a horizontal arc that’s parallel to the ground and a subsun arc, the top arc to the sun.
Lastly, the balloon-shaped curve connecting the top arc to the sun, called the heliac arc, is the rarest of all, according to NASA.
Dr. Thomas Hughes is a UK-based scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to readers. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
