Thursday, November 9, 2017
RING AROUND THE MOON...
It's five o'clock and 25 degrees out here this morning.
The roof and grasses are well coated with a rime of frosty diamonds, and it's interesting to see the brightness of the good-sized ring around the moon.
The ring, I know, is brought about by refracted moonlight, which is actually reflected sunlight from ice crystals in the upper atmosphere.
The shape of the ice crystals focuses the light into a ring, which is what I'm looking at right now. There's probably a folkloric name for that effect, but I can't tell you what that name might be.
There's a sheer cloud deck across the pre-dawn sky, and behind that veil, I can see some blurry stars.
My big dog Mick is energized by cold, and he is prancing like a show horse back and forth across the frosty grasses.
I am relieved when, finally, he decides it's time to go back to the house, where I can seek the warmth... and coffee!