A Happy Christmas to you all.

This picture taken about half an hour ago outside my house in Dunfermline shows a very clear Moon Ring or Halo.

This is caused by ice crystals forming in Cirrus cloud at about 20,000 feet. These six-sided ice crystals refract moonlight typically at 22°. If you are lucky a second ring can sometimes be seen at 44°.

Weather Folklore has it that a moon ring is a sign of bad weather on its way. The science behind this is because high altitude thin cirrus clouds normally precede a warm front by one or two days. A warm front is typically associated with low pressure and in Scotland, at least, this often as not means bad weather! It is also believed that the number of stars within a moon ring indicates the number of days until the bad weather arrives. I was able to count 1 prominent star and a total of 5 stars in this picture. I will report back here when the bad weather arrives!

[Sorry to take so long to report back - the bad weather arrived 24hrs later on Christmas Night!]

Canon EOS 30D, 10-20mm @ 11mm, f/5.6, 2 sec, ISO 800, Manual
PP: None

Comments
(Please note, I do read all comments but I just don't have time to respond
to everyone in person. Thankyou for visiting and commenting!)