Majestic "Moonbow" Makes Rainbows Seem Gaudy, Cheap

When Iceland isn’t spewing volcanic ash into the air or crowdsourcing a rewrite of its constitution, it’s home to some of the most spectacular views on the planet. This image from Stephane Vetter is a great example, featuring a gorgeous waterfall, spectacular rock formations, a faint aurora and a “moonbow.”

“What’s a moonbow?” I hear you cry. According to the Bad Astronomy blog, it’s a rainbow that uses the light of the moon instead of the sun:

[Moonbows are] caused by aerosolized water droplets at the base of the falls hanging in the air and acting like little prisms, bending the moonlight and splitting it into its colors. Moonbows are pretty faint, so it takes a time exposure like this to be able to discern them clearly.

(Stephane Vetter via Bad Astronomy)

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