Solar pillar

Reflections of the Sun

At sunrise, when the atmosphere is cold, you can sometimes see a solar pillar, a vertical column of light.
A solar pillar is a reflection of the rising sun in the needles of ice, falling gently, dead leaf to the ground. This remarkable optical phenomenon around the Sun is due to the vertical beams of light from the top and base of the Sun when it is low on the horizon (between 6 and 20 degrees).
If ice crystals are oriented parallel to each other fell, refracted rays combine to produce intense bright spots on either side of the Sun.
The solar pillars will not last long and they can see just before they dissipate into the twilight of becoming a darker setting sun.
The pillars of light are visible above the Sun, even after its disappearance behind the skyline.
A distinction is sometimes more columns that converge towards the sun already set.
The solar pillar may appear under the sun, especially if the viewer is at a high altitude.
These vertical columns of light can also be formed around the moon.
This beautiful sunset is adorned with a luminous column semblance link between heaven and earth.

Image: Photograph of Lake Norman, North Carolina (USA). At sunset, the cold air, ice crystals suspended reflect sunlight, forming a vertical column of light, called solar pillar. The red light of sunset illuminates the benches and Cirrus Altocumulus orbiting above. Image Therry Holdsclaw.

Twilight shadows

What could cause these black spokes?
It's an amazing phenomenon that creates these familiar shadows.
These rays originate from dark spectacular west of Lake Michigan, this image was taken in July 2010 from Pentwater, Michigan, USA.
These are the clouds near the horizon, tinged with red that block sunlight, resulting in prolongation of their unusual dark columns converging into the sunset.
The sunlight will reflect in the air behind the cloud, which makes this air column unusually dark.
These shadows of clouds are just the complement of crepuscular rays, these gaps quite common in the clouds where sunlight rushes.
We see in this picture few rays crepuscular.

The colors of the sunset when the sun is low on the horizon are due to light rays that pass through a thicker atmosphere to the horizon and vertically.
Sometimes, opposite the Sun in the east, one can also observe anti crepuscular rays.
This phenomenon is also called the arch anti twilight, or girdle of Venus.

Image: Photograph of Lake Michigan. Credit & Copyright: Kurt Voigts