
February 15, 2025
Parhelia at Abisko

February 15, 2025
Parhelia at Abisko
A little universe, just for you
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APOD published February 15, 2025. Credit: planet Earth. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Three suns seem to hug the horizon in this otherworldly winterscape. But the evocative scene was captured during a February 3rd snowmobile exploration of the mountainous region around Abisko National Park, northern Sweden, planet Earth. The two bright spots on either side of Earth's Sun are parhelia (singular parhelion), also known as mock suns or sun dogs. The parhelia are caused by hexagonal ice crystals suspended in the hazy atmosphere that reflect and refract sunlight. Commonly seen in winter and at high latitudes, the bright parhelia lie along the visible 22 degree ice halo of the Sun.
Image credit: planet Earth