Bending the Light

Buckster

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The natural phenomenon known as atmospheric lensing bending and splitting the light of a sunset:

1.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1820.jpg


2.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1821.jpg


3.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1822.jpg


4.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1823.jpg


5.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1824.jpg


6.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1825.jpg


7.
Atmospheric_Lensing_Sunset_1826.jpg
 
Hi-five, there, Buckster! You got the "green flash" in #6, I think. Also very impressive that you were able to build a light-house in the perfect place to provide appropriate foreground for the sunset. Do you, by chance, have the same ability with mountains?
 
Hi-five, there, Buckster! You got the "green flash" in #6, I think. Also very impressive that you were able to build a light-house in the perfect place to provide appropriate foreground for the sunset. Do you, by chance, have the same ability with mountains?
LOL! Never tried it with mountains! hehehe. This is one of my favorite places, Pigeon Point Lighthouse on the California coast. Fantastic place for sunsets!
 
Wonderful. Thanks for the quick lesson.
 
Cool. I've heard of that phenomenon, but never actually seen it.
 
How long was the 'green flash'? ...Hard to get a feel for how close each photo was to each other - seems like it was pretty quick though.

Is it a sunset only thing, or can you see it at sunrise too? If it's only sunset, that explains why I've never seen it before - never been to the west coast.
 
Hi-five, there, Buckster! You got the "green flash" in #6, I think. Also very impressive that you were able to build a light-house in the perfect place to provide appropriate foreground for the sunset. Do you, by chance, have the same ability with mountains?
LOL! Never tried it with mountains! hehehe. This is one of my favorite places, Pigeon Point Lighthouse on the California coast. Fantastic place for sunsets!

Mine too. I'm about 45 minutes or so from there, inland. Love the coast here ;)
 
How long was the 'green flash'? ...Hard to get a feel for how close each photo was to each other - seems like it was pretty quick though.
They're about 3 seconds apart from one another on those last few frames, including the "green flash" frame.

Is it a sunset only thing, or can you see it at sunrise too? If it's only sunset, that explains why I've never seen it before - never been to the west coast.
I believe this can happen at any time of day, in any direction, depending on the atmospheric conditions. If you Google "atmospheric lensing" you'll see examples of it in the middle of the day on car headlights and other stuff even. My brother in law told me that he and another fella were out hunting and witnessed the phenomenon wherein it appeared to place a building where none existed. It's associated with mirages that are not just the run of the mill heat wave type stuff where it looks like there's water on top of that blacktop in the distance.
 
I've never seen the green flash, and it is apparently a relatively rare event. Wikipedia claims it is visible only at sunrise or sunset, when particular atmospheric conditions exist that allow it to form. If you google "green flash" in the image database, you'll see a number of examples which look very much like Buckster's #6.

@ Josh: my understanding that it is a very transient phenomenon, lasting no more than a second or two, under most circumstances.
 
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