Moon halos aren't extremely rare; they're fairly common optical phenomena that occur when moonlight refracts through hexagonal ice crystals in high-altitude cirrus clouds, often signaling an approaching warm front or rain, and can be seen on many days a year, especially in colder months when ice crystals are more abundant at high altitudes, though they can happen anytime.
It forms as the sun- or moonlight is refracted in millions of hexagonal ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere. The halo is large; the radius is roughly the size of an outstretched hand at arm's length. A 22° halo may be visible on as many as 100 days per year—much more frequently than rainbows.
Your chances of spotting a halo around the moon are greater during the winter when they're most common. Even though it can be seen with the unaided eye, use a telescope or binoculars for a closer look.
The 22° halo (previously known as the small haloe) is the most frequently observed halo phenomenon.
A halo is a ring or light that forms around the sun or moon as the sun or moon light refracts off ice crystals present in a thin veil of cirrus clouds. The halo is usually seen as a bright, white ring although sometimes it can have color.
If you notice a sudden appearance of halos or they're accompanied by pain, blurred vision or other severe symptoms, seek immediate medical care, as this can signal a serious eye condition.
In the Bible, the appearance of halos around the moon is not explicitly discussed. However, halos were often used as a symbol of divine presence and were associated with the glory and power of God in both Jewish and Christian traditions.
In astrology, a rainbow or halo around the moon is often interpreted as a sign of good luck, harmony, transformation, and feminine energy.
Yes, when you look at the Sun, you see it as it was about 8 minutes ago because light travels at a finite speed, taking roughly 8.3 minutes to cover the distance from the Sun to Earth, acting like a cosmic time machine, showing us the past of all celestial objects. This means if the Sun vanished, we wouldn't know for 8 minutes, and it also applies to everything else in space, with farther objects showing us even older history.
In 2026, the Moon will put on several shows, including a total lunar eclipse (Blood Moon) in March, a Blue Moon (second full moon in May), and three supermoons (January, November, December), making it a great year for moon-gazers with several prominent lunar events, including a rare close alignment at the year's start and a festive Christmas Eve supermoon, along with two solar eclipses.
Scientists call them 22-degree halos. An old weather saying "ring around the sun or moon means rain soon. " There's truth to this saying, because high cirrus clouds often come before a storm. These clouds contain millions of tiny ice crystals and the halos are caused by refraction.
The year 2026 will feature 13 full moons, including a blue moon in May. Four eclipses will take place in 2026, including two total lunar eclipses and two solar eclipses. Stargazers can look forward to several meteor showers, with the Perseids and Geminids being among the most popular.
Sun halos are generally considered rare. They are formed by hexagonal ice crystals refracting light in the sky — 22 degrees from the sun. That's why a sun halo is also commonly called a 22 degree halo. The prism effect is such that the rainbow colors go from red on the inside to violet on the outside.
Halos or rings around the moon often form due to high clouds ahead of a storm system.
Apollo 17 became the last crewed mission to the Moon for an indefinite amount of time. The main reason for this was money. The cost of getting to the Moon was, ironically, astronomical.
As defined by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a light-year is the distance that light travels in vacuum in one Julian year (365.25 days). Despite its inclusion of the word "year", the term is not a unit of time.
Why do you think getting to space is so difficult when it's only 62 miles away? Answer: Space is 62 vertical miles away. It takes a lot of energy to overcome gravity for that distance and gain the speed required to stay in orbit (approximately 17,500 miles per hour) once you've arrived.
Everything You See Is From 15 Seconds in the Past, Research Suggests. And this illusion is probably the reason why our vision doesn't constantly make us throw up. Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: An experiment reveals that our vision lags up to 15 seconds behind real time.
Light from either the sun or moon refracts through the ice crystals. A 22-degree halo then forms around the sun or moon. A 22-degree halo is the most common halo to form during refraction. In rare cases, a 46-degree halo forms.
Spiritual significance in Christianity
A more Catholic interpretation is that the halo represents the light of divine grace suffusing the soul, which is perfectly united and in harmony with the physical body.
In statues, it was usually represented as a golden disc placed behind the head of the character. The halo has then always been intended as a symbol of light and grace given directly by God.
CSB Then I saw him open the sixth seal. A violent earthquake occurred; the sun turned black like sackcloth made of hair; the entire moon became like blood; NLT I watched as the Lamb broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake. The sun became as dark as black cloth, and the moon became as red as blood.
Revelation 12:17 points unmistakably to the remnant of the Seed of the woman as an end-time group who love God and are faithful to Him. This is clear in their keeping of His commandments and holding to the testimony of Jesus.