Mock-Mirage Sunset
A wonderful example of a mock-mirage sunset videoed - play it below left - by Michael Bolte at Santa Cruz, California.
It has everything. Three suns, the upper one descending, the one below it inverted and ascending and the lowest segment sinking.
The uppermost is topped by a green rim and occasional green flashes.
A temperature inversion is responsible. The lower air layer is cooled by the cold ocean current off the Californian coast while the upper air is warm from the land. The suns rays are refracted into the mirage as they travel through the resulting temperature and density gradients.
©Michael Bolte, shown with permission |
