Halo around the Sun, Ore Mountains, Saxony, Germany

© Martin Ruegner/Getty Image

Info. Halo around the Sun

This bright ring of light around the Sun is called a halo. The optical phenomenon is produced by the refraction or reflection of light (typically from the Sun or Moon) by tiny ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere. Halos can have many forms, ranging from colourful rings to arcs and bright spots in the sky. One of the best-known types is the circular halo, which you can see in our photo taken in the Ore Mountains, a beautiful range of low mountains stretching 160 kilometres along the German-Czech border.