Cloud Corona Above Syracuse, Italy

Photographer: Dario Giannobile 
Summary Authors: Dario Giannobile; Jim Foster

The photo above shows the lovely, pastel colors I noticed in the western sky before sunset, near my home in Syracuse, (Sicily) Italy. It was taken on February 13, 2021. These colors aren’t associated with sunset or twilight, however. Rather they result from the diffraction of sunlight by tiny, uniform-sized droplets that compose mid-level clouds that happen to be in the vicinity of the Sun. This is a cloud corona. Its colors, filaments and structure resemble nebula I sometimes see when peering through my telescope.

Photo Details: Canon 6d camera; Sigma 150-600 lens; f/11; ISO 100; 1/3200 second exposure.

• Syracuse, Italy Coordinates: 37.0755, 15.2866
• Related Links
  • Iridescent Clouds at Sunrise over the Five Towers
  • Cloud Corona over the Netherlands
  • Dario’s Website
• Student Links
  • Cloud Classifications and Characteristics
  • Sunset, dusk and twilight. What’s the difference?
• Earth Observatory
  • Sunset from the International Space Station