Heiligenschein
   HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - Heiligenschein
OR:
Heiligenschein on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

(; ) 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 ...
in which a bright spot appears around the shadow of the viewer's head in the presence of
dew Dew is water in the form of droplets that appears on thin, exposed objects in the morning or evening due to condensation. As the exposed surface cools by radiating its heat, atmospheric moisture condenses at a rate greater than that at wh ...
. In
photogrammetry Photogrammetry is the science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through the process of recording, measuring and interpreting photographic images and patterns of electromagnetic radiant ima ...
and
remote sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring information about Earth ...
, it is more commonly known as the hotspot. It is also occasionally known as Cellini's halo after the Italian artist and writer
Benvenuto Cellini Benvenuto Cellini (, ; 3 November 150013 February 1571) was an Italian goldsmith, sculptor, and author. His best-known extant works include the ''Cellini Salt Cellar'', the sculpture of ''Perseus with the Head of Medusa'', and his autobiography ...
(15001571), who described the phenomenon in his memoirs in 1562. Nearly spherical dew droplets act as
lens A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
es to focus the light onto the surface behind them. When this light scatters or reflects off that surface, the same lens re-focuses that light into the direction from which it came. This configuration is sometimes called a cat's eye retroreflector. Any retroreflective surface is brightest around the
antisolar point The antisolar point is the abstract point on the celestial sphere directly opposite the Sun from an observer's perspective. This means that the antisolar point lies above the horizon when the Sun is below it, and vice versa. On a sunny day, t ...
.
Opposition surge The opposition surge (sometimes known as the opposition effect, opposition spike or Seeliger effect) is the brightening of a rough surface, or an object with many particles, when illuminated from directly behind the observer. The term is most wid ...
by other particles than water and the glory in water vapour are similar effects caused by different mechanisms.


See also

* Aureole effect *
Brocken spectre A Brocken spectre (British English; American spelling Brocken specter; german: Brockengespenst), also called Brocken bow, mountain spectre, or spectre of the Brocken is the magnified (and apparently enormous) shadow of an observer cast in mid ai ...
, the magnified shadow of an observer cast upon the upper surfaces of clouds opposite the Sun *
Gegenschein Gegenschein (; ; ) or counterglow is a faintly bright spot in the night sky centered at the antisolar point. The backscatter of sunlight by interplanetary dust causes this optical phenomenon. Explanation Like zodiacal light, gegenschein is ...
, a faint spot of dust lit by sunlight focused by Earth's atmosphere, visible in the night sky toward the antisolar point *
Retroreflector A retroreflector (sometimes called a retroflector or cataphote) is a device or surface that reflects radiation (usually light) back to its source with minimum scattering. This works at a wide range of angle of incidence, unlike a planar mirror, ...
*
Subparhelic circle The subparhelic circle is a rare halo, an optical phenomenon, located below the horizon. It passes through both the subsun (below the Sun) and the antisolar point (opposite to the Sun). The subparhelic circle is the subhorizon counterpart to the p ...
* Sylvanshine


References


External links


A site showing examples of a Heiligenschein
{{Benvenuto Cellini, state=collapsed Atmospheric optical phenomena