Alexander's band or Alexander's dark band is an

optical phenomenon Optical phenomena are any observable events that result from the interaction of light and matter. All optical phenomena coincide with quantum phenomena. Common optical phenomena are often due to the interaction of light from the sun or moon wit ...

associated with

rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

s which was named after

Alexander of Aphrodisias Alexander of Aphrodisias ( grc-gre, Ἀλέξανδρος ὁ Ἀφροδισιεύς, translit=Alexandros ho Aphrodisieus; AD) was a Peripatetic school, Peripatetic philosopher and the most celebrated of the Ancient Greek Commentaries on Aristo ...

who first described this phenomenon in Aphrodisias, ''Commentary on Book IV of Aristotle's'' Meteorology (also known as: ''Commentary on Book IV of Aristotle's'' De Meteorologica or ''On Aristotle's'' Meteorology 4), commentary 41. The dark band occurs due to the deviation angles of the primary and secondary rainbows. Both bows exist due to an optical effect called the angle of minimum deviation. The

refractive index In optics, the refractive index (or refraction index) of an optical medium is a dimensionless number that gives the indication of the light bending ability of that medium. The refractive index determines how much the path of light is bent, or ...

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

prevents light from being deviated at smaller angles. The

minimum deviation In a prism, the angle of deviation () decreases with increase in the angle of incidence () up to a particular angle. This angle of incidence where the angle of deviation in a prism is minimum is called the minimum deviation position of the prism a ...

angle for the primary bow is 137.5°. Light can be deviated up to 180°, causing it to be reflected right back to the observer. Light which is deviated at intermediate angles brightens the inside of the rainbow. The minimum deviation angle for the secondary bow is about 230°. The fact that this angle is greater than 180° makes the secondary bow an inside-out version of the primary. Its colors are reversed, and light which is deviated at greater angles brightens the sky ''outside'' the bow. Between the two bows lies an area of unlit sky referred to as Alexander's band. Light which is reflected by raindrops in this region of the sky cannot reach the observer, though it may contribute to a rainbow seen by another observer elsewhere.

References

External links

* Atmospheric optical phenomena de:Alexanders dunkles Band fr:Arc-en-ciel#La bande sombre d'Alexandre {{optics-stub