Date:27/07/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/07/27/stories/2007072750210200.htm

Photo: K. R. Deepak

Sight to behold: A halo formed around the sun in Visakhapatnam on Thursday afternoon. A halo is formed when light from the sun passes through the clouds that surround it. Often, the topmost layer of these clouds has tiny ice crystals along with the usual water droplets. When light passes through these ice crystals, they act like a combination of prisms, and the combined effect of these ’prisms’ gives the appearance of a ring.