Sun dog
Encyclopedia
A sun dog or sundog, scientific name parhelion (plural parhelia) ; , also called a mock sun or a phantom sun, is an atmospheric phenomenon that creates bright spots of light in the sky, often on a luminous ring or halo
on either side of the sun
.
Sundogs may appear as a colored patch of light to the left or right of the sun, 22° distant and at the same distance above the horizon as the sun, and in ice halos. They can be seen anywhere in the world during any season, but they are not always obvious or bright. Sundogs are best seen and are most conspicuous when the sun is low.
Sundogs are made commonly of plate-shaped hexagonal ice crystals in high and cold cirrus cloud
s or, during very cold weather, by ice crystals called diamond dust
drifting in the air at low levels. These crystals act as prisms, bending the light rays passing through them with a minimum deflection of 22°. If the crystals are randomly oriented, a complete ring around the sun is seen — a halo
. But often, as the crystals sink through the air they become vertically aligned, so sunlight is refracted horizontally — in this case, sundogs are seen.
As the sun rises higher, the rays passing through the crystals are increasingly skewed from the horizontal plane. Their angle of deviation increases and the sundogs move further from the sun. However, they always stay at the same elevation as the sun.
Sundogs are red-colored at the side nearest the sun. Farther out the colors grade through oranges to blue. However, the colors overlap considerably and so are muted, never pure or saturated. The colors of the sundog finally merge into the white of the parhelic circle
(if the latter is visible).
It is theoretically possible to predict the forms of sundogs as would be seen on other planets and moons. Mars
might have sundogs formed by both water-ice and CO2-ice. On the giant gas planets — Jupiter
, Saturn
, Uranus
and Neptune
— other crystals form the clouds of ammonia
, methane
, and other substances that can produce halos with four or more sundogs.
(Meteorology III.2, 372a14) notes that "two mock suns rose with the sun and followed it all through the day until sunset." He says that "mock suns" are always to the side, never above or below, most commonly at sunrise or sunset, more rarely in the middle of the day.
The poet Aratus
(Phaenomena 880–891) mentions parhelia as part of his catalogue of Weather Signs; for him, they can indicate rain, wind, or an approaching storm.
's On the Republic
(54–51 BC) is one of many by Greek and Roman authors who refer to sun dogs and similar phenomena:
Seneca
speaks of them diffusely in the first book of his Naturales Quaestiones
.
The 2nd century Roman writer and philosopher Apuleius
in his Apologia XV says "What is the cause of the prismatic colours of the rainbow, or of the appearance in heaven of two rival images of the sun, with sundry other phenomena treated in a monumental volume by Archimedes
of Syracuse."
in Herefordshire
, England in 1461 is supposed to have involved the appearance of a complete parhelion with three "suns". The Yorkist commander, later Edward IV, convinced his initially frightened troops that it represented the Holy Trinity and Edward's troops won a decisive victory.
, who wrote in his Brotherly Faithfulness: Epistles from a Time of Persecution:
The observation most likely occurred in Auspitz (Hustopeče)
, Moravia
in very late October or very early November of 1533. The original was written in German and is from a letter originally sent in November 1533 from Auspitz in Moravia to the Adige Valley in Tyrol
. The Kuntz Maurer and Michel Schuster mentioned in the letter left Hutter on the Thursday after the feast day of Simon
and Jude, which is October 28.
While mostly known and often quoted for being the oldest colour depiction of the city of Stockholm
, Vädersolstavlan
(Swedish
; "The Sundog Painting", literally "The Weather Sun Painting") is arguably also one of the oldest known depictions of a sun dog. For two hours in the morning of April 20, 1535, the skies over the city were filled with white circles and arcs crossing the sky, while additional suns appeared around the sun. The phenomenon quickly resulted in rumours of an omen
of God's forthcoming revenge on King Gustav Vasa
(1496–1560) for having introduced Protestantism
during the 1520s and for being heavy-handed with his enemies allied with the Danish king.
Hoping to end speculations, the Chancellor and Lutheran
scholar Olaus Petri
(1493–1552) ordered a painting to be produced documenting the event. When confronted with the painting, the king, however, interpreted it as a conspiracy - the real sun of course being himself threatened by competing fake suns, one being Olaus Petri and the other the clergyman and scholar Laurentius Andreae
(1470–1552), both thus accused of treachery, but eventually escaping capital punishment. The original painting is lost, but a copy from the 1630s survives and still can be seen in the church Storkyrkan
in central Stockholm.
, Germany
were filled with a multitude of celestial objects that were observed by many people in the city. The phenomenon was described in a News notice (an early form of newspaper) published in Nuremberg on April 14, 1561, along with a woodcut by Hans Glaser, depicted to the right.
to interrupt his metaphysical studies and led to his work of natural philosophy called "The World".
...and that rare phenomenon
The iridule—when beautiful and strange,
In a bright sky above a mountain range
One opal cloudlet in an oval form
Reflects the rainbow of a thunderstorm…
Halo (optical phenomenon)
A halo from Greek ἅλως; also known as a nimbus, icebow or gloriole) is an optical phenomenon produced by ice crystals creating colored or white arcs and spots in the sky. Many are near the sun or moon but others are elsewhere and even in the opposite part of the sky...
on either side of the sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
.
Sundogs may appear as a colored patch of light to the left or right of the sun, 22° distant and at the same distance above the horizon as the sun, and in ice halos. They can be seen anywhere in the world during any season, but they are not always obvious or bright. Sundogs are best seen and are most conspicuous when the sun is low.
Formation and characteristics
Cirrus cloud
Cirrus clouds are atmospheric clouds generally characterized by thin, wispy strands, giving them their name from the Latin word cirrus meaning a ringlet or curling lock of hair...
s or, during very cold weather, by ice crystals called diamond dust
Diamond dust
Diamond dust is a ground-level cloud composed of tiny ice crystals. This meteorological phenomenon is also referred to simply as ice crystals and is reported in the METAR code as IC. Diamond dust generally forms under otherwise clear or nearly clear skies, so it is sometimes referred to as...
drifting in the air at low levels. These crystals act as prisms, bending the light rays passing through them with a minimum deflection of 22°. If the crystals are randomly oriented, a complete ring around the sun is seen — a halo
Halo (optical phenomenon)
A halo from Greek ἅλως; also known as a nimbus, icebow or gloriole) is an optical phenomenon produced by ice crystals creating colored or white arcs and spots in the sky. Many are near the sun or moon but others are elsewhere and even in the opposite part of the sky...
. But often, as the crystals sink through the air they become vertically aligned, so sunlight is refracted horizontally — in this case, sundogs are seen.
As the sun rises higher, the rays passing through the crystals are increasingly skewed from the horizontal plane. Their angle of deviation increases and the sundogs move further from the sun. However, they always stay at the same elevation as the sun.
Sundogs are red-colored at the side nearest the sun. Farther out the colors grade through oranges to blue. However, the colors overlap considerably and so are muted, never pure or saturated. The colors of the sundog finally merge into the white of the parhelic circle
Parhelic circle
A parhelic circle is a halo, an optical phenomenon appearing as a horizontal white line on the same altitude as the sun, or occasionally the Moon. If complete, it stretches all around the sky, but more commonly it only appears in sections....
(if the latter is visible).
It is theoretically possible to predict the forms of sundogs as would be seen on other planets and moons. Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
might have sundogs formed by both water-ice and CO2-ice. On the giant gas planets — Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
, Saturn
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...
, Uranus
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus , the father of Cronus and grandfather of Zeus...
and Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
— other crystals form the clouds of ammonia
Ammonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
, methane
Methane
Methane is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is the simplest alkane, the principal component of natural gas, and probably the most abundant organic compound on earth. The relative abundance of methane makes it an attractive fuel...
, and other substances that can produce halos with four or more sundogs.
History
Greece
AristotleAristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
(Meteorology III.2, 372a14) notes that "two mock suns rose with the sun and followed it all through the day until sunset." He says that "mock suns" are always to the side, never above or below, most commonly at sunrise or sunset, more rarely in the middle of the day.
The poet Aratus
Aratus
Aratus was a Greek didactic poet. He is best known today for being quoted in the New Testament. His major extant work is his hexameter poem Phaenomena , the first half of which is a verse setting of a lost work of the same name by Eudoxus of Cnidus. It describes the constellations and other...
(Phaenomena 880–891) mentions parhelia as part of his catalogue of Weather Signs; for him, they can indicate rain, wind, or an approaching storm.
Rome
A passage in CiceroCicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
's On the Republic
De re publica
De re publica is a dialogue on Roman politics by Cicero, written in six books between 54 and 51 BC. It is written in the format of a Socratic dialogue in which Scipio Africanus Minor takes the role of a wise old man — an obligatory part for the genre...
(54–51 BC) is one of many by Greek and Roman authors who refer to sun dogs and similar phenomena:
Seneca
Seneca the Younger
Lucius Annaeus Seneca was a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, dramatist, and in one work humorist, of the Silver Age of Latin literature. He was tutor and later advisor to emperor Nero...
speaks of them diffusely in the first book of his Naturales Quaestiones
Naturales quaestiones
Naturales quaestiones is an encyclopedia of the natural world written by Seneca around 65 AD. It is much shorter than the Naturalis Historia produced by Pliny the Elder some ten years later, however.-Content:...
.
The 2nd century Roman writer and philosopher Apuleius
Apuleius
Apuleius was a Latin prose writer. He was a Berber, from Madaurus . He studied Platonist philosophy in Athens; travelled to Italy, Asia Minor and Egypt; and was an initiate in several cults or mysteries. The most famous incident in his life was when he was accused of using magic to gain the...
in his Apologia XV says "What is the cause of the prismatic colours of the rainbow, or of the appearance in heaven of two rival images of the sun, with sundry other phenomena treated in a monumental volume by Archimedes
Archimedes
Archimedes of Syracuse was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer. Although few details of his life are known, he is regarded as one of the leading scientists in classical antiquity. Among his advances in physics are the foundations of hydrostatics, statics and an...
of Syracuse."
Wars of the Roses
The prelude to the Battle of Mortimer's CrossBattle of Mortimer's Cross
The Battle of Mortimer's Cross was fought on 2 February 1461 near Wigmore, Herefordshire . It was part of the Wars of the Roses....
in Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
, England in 1461 is supposed to have involved the appearance of a complete parhelion with three "suns". The Yorkist commander, later Edward IV, convinced his initially frightened troops that it represented the Holy Trinity and Edward's troops won a decisive victory.
Jakob Hutter
Possibly the earliest clear description of a sundog is by Jacob HutterJacob Hutter
Jacob Hutter , was a Tyrolean Anabaptist leader and founder of the Hutterites.Jacob Hutter was born in St. Lorenzen in the Puster Valley in the County of Tyrol...
, who wrote in his Brotherly Faithfulness: Epistles from a Time of Persecution:
The observation most likely occurred in Auspitz (Hustopeče)
Hustopece
Hustopeče is a town in southern Moravia of the Czech Republic with 5,956 inhabitants. Hustopeče lies in the Břeclav District and is 25 km northwest of Břeclav.-History:...
, Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
in very late October or very early November of 1533. The original was written in German and is from a letter originally sent in November 1533 from Auspitz in Moravia to the Adige Valley in Tyrol
Tyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
. The Kuntz Maurer and Michel Schuster mentioned in the letter left Hutter on the Thursday after the feast day of Simon
Simon the Zealot
The apostle called Simon Zelotes, Simon the Zealot, in Luke 6:15 and Acts 1:13; and Simon Kananaios or Simon Cananeus , was one of the most obscure among the apostles of Jesus. Little is recorded of him aside from his name...
and Jude, which is October 28.
Vädersolstavlan
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Vädersolstavlan
Vädersolstavlan
is an oil-on-panel painting depicting a halo display, an atmospheric optical phenomenon, observed over Stockholm on April 20, 1535. It is named after the sun dogs appearing on the upper right part of the painting...
(Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
; "The Sundog Painting", literally "The Weather Sun Painting") is arguably also one of the oldest known depictions of a sun dog. For two hours in the morning of April 20, 1535, the skies over the city were filled with white circles and arcs crossing the sky, while additional suns appeared around the sun. The phenomenon quickly resulted in rumours of an omen
Omen
An omen is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change...
of God's forthcoming revenge on King Gustav Vasa
Gustav I of Sweden
Gustav I of Sweden, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known simply as Gustav Vasa , was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death....
(1496–1560) for having introduced Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
during the 1520s and for being heavy-handed with his enemies allied with the Danish king.
Hoping to end speculations, the Chancellor and Lutheran
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
scholar Olaus Petri
Olaus Petri
Olof Persson , better known under the Latin form of his name, Olaus Petri , was a clergyman, writer, and a major contributor to the Protestant Reformation in Sweden...
(1493–1552) ordered a painting to be produced documenting the event. When confronted with the painting, the king, however, interpreted it as a conspiracy - the real sun of course being himself threatened by competing fake suns, one being Olaus Petri and the other the clergyman and scholar Laurentius Andreae
Laurentius Andreae
Laurentius Andreae was a Swedish clergyman and scholar who is acknowledged as one of his country's preeminent intellectual figures during the first half of the 16th century...
(1470–1552), both thus accused of treachery, but eventually escaping capital punishment. The original painting is lost, but a copy from the 1630s survives and still can be seen in the church Storkyrkan
Storkyrkan
Sankt Nikolai kyrka , most commonly known as Storkyrkan and Stockholms domkyrka , is the oldest church in Gamla Stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. It is an important example of Swedish Brick Gothic...
in central Stockholm.
Nuremberg, Germany in 1561
Sun dogs might explain a remarkable phenomenon observed in Germany: on April 4, 1561, the skies over NurembergNuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
were filled with a multitude of celestial objects that were observed by many people in the city. The phenomenon was described in a News notice (an early form of newspaper) published in Nuremberg on April 14, 1561, along with a woodcut by Hans Glaser, depicted to the right.
Influence on Descartes in 1629
A set of powerful parhelia in Rome in the Summer of 1629 caused René DescartesRené Descartes
René Descartes ; was a French philosopher and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day...
to interrupt his metaphysical studies and led to his work of natural philosophy called "The World".
Fiction
- ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
appears to mention the phenomenon in his Henry VI, Part 3Henry VI, part 3Henry VI, Part 3 or The Third Part of Henry the Sixt is a history play by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1591, and set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England...
, written in about 1590, when he has Edward say, "Dazzle mine eyes, or do I see three suns?" - The poem Die Nebensonnen ("The Parhelia"), by Wilhelm MüllerWilhelm MüllerWilhelm Müller was a German lyric poet.-Life:Wilhelm Müller was born at Dessau, the son of a tailor. He was educated at the gymnasium of his native town and at the university of Berlin, where he devoted himself to philological and historical studies...
from his 1823–4 cycle WinterreiseWinterreiseWinterreise is a song cycle for voice and piano by Franz Schubert , a setting of 24 poems by Wilhelm Müller. It is the second of Schubert's two great song cycles on Müller's poems, the earlier being Die schöne Müllerin...
, was set to music by Franz SchubertFranz SchubertFranz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
. It begins: "Drei Sonnen sah ich am Himmel stehn…" ("Three Suns I saw in the sky"). - Jack LondonJack LondonJohn Griffith "Jack" London was an American author, journalist, and social activist. He was a pioneer in the then-burgeoning world of commercial magazine fiction and was one of the first fiction writers to obtain worldwide celebrity and a large fortune from his fiction alone...
wrote a short story in 1905 called The Sun-Dog Trail. - In the 1949 novel Mrs. MikeMrs. MikeMrs. Mike, the Story of Katherine Mary Flannigan is a novel by Benedict and Nancy Mars Freedman set in the Canadian wilderness in the early 1900s. Considered by some a young adult classic, Mrs. Mike has been published in several editions and is read worldwide...
by Benedict and Nancy Mars Freedman, Sgt. Mike Flannigan, a Canadian Mountie, explains sun dogs when they are seen by his young Bostonian wife for the first time. Claiming to have observed as many as sixteen of them together in the sky at a single time, he says the Indians believe they are "evil stars trying to kill the sun," but that they are actually caused by atmospheric conditions, and that when they appear "ten to one there's a blizzard by the morning."
- A reference to 'parhelia' occurs in the Introduction to Vladimir NabokovVladimir NabokovVladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov was a multilingual Russian novelist and short story writer. Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Russian, then rose to international prominence as a master English prose stylist...
's 1962 novel Pale FirePale FirePale Fire is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is presented as a 999-line poem titled "Pale Fire", written by the fictional John Shade, with a foreword and lengthy commentary by a neighbor and academic colleague of the poet. Together these elements form a narrative in which both authors are...
:
The short (166) Canto One, with all those amusing birds and parhelia, occupies thirteen cards.
...and that rare phenomenon
The iridule—when beautiful and strange,
In a bright sky above a mountain range
One opal cloudlet in an oval form
Reflects the rainbow of a thunderstorm…
- In the fifth novel of the Aubrey–Maturin seriesAubrey–Maturin seriesThe Aubrey–Maturin series is a sequence of nautical historical novels—20 completed and one unfinished—by Patrick O'Brian, set during the Napoleonic Wars and centering on the friendship between Captain Jack Aubrey of the Royal Navy and his ship's surgeon Stephen Maturin, who is also a physician,...
, Desolation IslandDesolation Island (novel)Desolation Island is an historical novel by Patrick O'Brian. It is the fifth book in the Aubrey-Maturin series, and is set prior to the War of 1812.-Plot summary:...
, 1978, Patrick O'BrianPatrick O'BrianPatrick O'Brian, CBE , born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and centred on the friendship of English Naval Captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen...
writes:
- In her popular historical novel The Sunne in Splendour, 1982, about Richard III of EnglandRichard III of EnglandRichard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
, Sharon Kay PenmanSharon Kay PenmanSharon Kay Penman is an American historical novelist, published in the UK as Sharon Penman. She is best known for the Welsh Princes trilogy and the Plantagenet series. In addition, she has written four medieval mysteries, the first of which, The Queen's Man, was a finalist in 1996 for the Best...
writes:
- Sundog is the title of a 1984 novel by Jim HarrisonJim HarrisonJames "Jim" Harrison is an American author known for his poetry, fiction, essays, reviews, and writings about food. He has been called "a force of nature", and his work has been compared to that of William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway...
. - The horror fictionHorror fictionHorror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
writer Stephen KingStephen KingStephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
included a novella called The Sun Dog in his 1990 collection Four Past MidnightFour Past MidnightFour Past Midnight is a collection of four novellas by Stephen King, published in 1990. The four stories are "The Langoliers"; "Secret Window, Secret Garden"; "The Library Policeman"; and "The Sun Dog".- The Langoliers :...
. - Jane GardamJane GardamJane Mary Gardam OBE is a British author of children's and adult fiction. She also reviews for the Spectator and the Telegraph, and writes for BBC radio, where her current project is six programmes on the suburbs. She lives in Kent, Wimbledon, and Yorkshire. She has won numerous literary awards,...
at the end of her 2006 novel Old Filth has the main character, Edward Feathers, see a parhelion from the window of a plane at sunrise on New Year's Day:
Fine arts & film
- One of Robert RauschenbergRobert RauschenbergRobert Rauschenberg was an American artist who came to prominence in the 1950s transition from Abstract Expressionism to Pop Art. Rauschenberg is well-known for his "Combines" of the 1950s, in which non-traditional materials and objects were employed in innovative combinations...
's early experiments in 1962 employing the silk-screen process to reuse previously published images in Combine Paintings is titled Sun Dog. - Ingmar Bergman's film The Passion of AnnaThe Passion of AnnaThe Passion of Anna is a 1969 Swedish drama film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. Bergman was awarded Best Director at the 1971 National Society of Film Critics Awards for the film.-Plot:...
opens with a scene showing the protagonist stopping his work to observe three suns in the sky. - Sun dogs appear in the film The Deer HunterThe Deer HunterThe Deer Hunter is a 1978 drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino about a trio of Russian American steel worker friends and their infantry service in the Vietnam War. The film stars Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep, John Savage, John Cazale, and George Dzundza...
. At the beginning of the film, as the men are leaving work, they see the phenomenon. Robert De NiroRobert De NiroRobert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
's character describes it as an 'old Indian thing' and "A blessing on the hunter sent by the great wolf to his children".
Popular culture
- "The Dark Side of the SunThe Dark Side of the SunThe Dark Side of the Sun is a science fiction novel by Terry Pratchett, first published in 1976. It is similar to the work of Isaac Asimov. According to Don D'Ammassa, both this and Pratchett's 1981 sci-fi novel Strata are spoofing parts of Larry Niven's Ringworld...
", an early science-fiction novel by popular comic fantasy author Terry PratchettTerry PratchettSir Terence David John "Terry" Pratchett, OBE is an English novelist, known for his frequently comical work in the fantasy genre. He is best known for his popular and long-running Discworld series of comic fantasy novels...
, features a race of telepathic space-travelling beings known as "sundogs", described as vast "fat lozenges" glowing in various colours as adults. As pups they are cone-shaped and furred. - The minor league hockey team, the Arizona SundogsArizona SundogsThe Arizona Sundogs are a double-A minor-league professional ice hockey team based in Prescott Valley, Arizona that began play in the Central Hockey League in 2006 and celebrated its fifth anniversary season in 2010-11...
, is named after this phenomenon. Their logo features the letter "S" surrounding twin suns.
Popular music
- Sun dogs are referenced in RushRush (band)Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...
's 1989 song "Chain Lightning" on the album PrestoPresto (album)-Personnel:* Geddy Lee - bass guitar, synthesizers, vocals* Alex Lifeson - electric and acoustic guitars, backing vocals* Neil Peart - drums, percussion* Rupert Hine - additional keyboards, production*Stephen W Tayler - recording and mixing...
. Neil PeartNeil PeartNeil Ellwood Peart , OC, is a Canadian musician and author. He is the drummer for the rock band Rush.Peart grew up in Port Dalhousie, Ontario . During adolescence, he floated from regional band to regional band in pursuit of a career as a full-time drummer...
(lyricist) has been quoted as saying:"I'm a weather fanatic...I watch the weather...and one night I was watching it and there are two incidents in that song that are synchronicity to one weather report where the weatherman showed a picture of sun dogs...they're a really beautiful natural phenomenon and I love the name, too. Sun dogs just has a great sound to it."
- The band Of MontrealOf MontrealOf Montreal is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia. It was founded by frontman Kevin Barnes in 1996, named after a failed romance with a woman "of Montreal." The band is one of the bands of the Elephant 6 collective...
used the image in the lyrics to "The Past Is a Grotesque Animal" on the 2007 album Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? is the eighth album from indie pop band Of Montreal. It was released January 23, 2007. The album was written, performed, and recorded by Kevin Barnes, with assistance from friends and family: prominent Elephant Six members Bryan Poole, Jamey Huggins and Heather...
:
I've played the unraveler, the parhelion
But even Apocalypse is fleeting
There's no death, no ugly world
- The British neofolkNeofolkNeofolk is a form of folk music-inspired experimental music that emerged from post-industrial music circles. Neofolk can either be solely acoustic folk music or a blend of acoustic folk instrumentation aided by varieties of accompanying sounds such as pianos, strings and elements of industrial...
band Death in JuneDeath in JuneDeath in June are a neofolk group led by English folk musician Douglas Pearce, better known as Douglas P. The band was originally formed in Britain in 1981 as a trio, but after the other members left in 1984 and 1985 to work on other projects, the group became the work of Douglas P. and various...
released an EP called "Sun dogs" in 1994. - Athens, Georgia based jam band Perpetual Groove have back to back songs titled "Perihelion" and "Sun Dog" on their 2003 release Sweet Oblivious Antidote. They are instrumental tracks.
- Sun dogs are mentioned in Paul SimonPaul SimonPaul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
's 1990 song "The Cool, Cool River" on the album The Rhythm of the SaintsThe Rhythm of the SaintsThe Rhythm of the Saints is the eighth studio album by Paul Simon, released in 1990. Like its predecessor Graceland, the album gained commercial success and received mostly favorable reviews from critics...
. - Turkish-Austrian electronic music artist Murat SesMurat SesMurat Ses is a Turkish keyboard player and composer with strong Eurasian electronic elements...
dedicated his eighth solo album "Beside the Sun" (2010) to this particular phenomenon.
See also
- 120° parhelion120° parhelionA 120° parhelion is a relatively rare halo, an optical phenomenon occasionally appearing along with very bright sun dogs as ice crystal-saturated cirrus clouds fill the atmosphere...
- AnthelionAnthelionAn anthelion is a rare optical phenomenon appearing on the parhelic circle opposite to the sun as a faint white halo, not unlike a sundog.How anthelions are formed is disputed...
- Atmospheric opticsAtmospheric opticsAtmospheric optics deals with how the unique optical properties of the Earth's atmosphere cause a wide range of spectacular optical phenomena. The blue color of the sky is a direct result of Rayleigh scattering which redirects higher frequency sunlight back into the field of view of the observer...
- Circumhorizontal arcCircumhorizontal arcA circumhorizontal arc is an optical phenomenon - an ice-halo formed by plate-shaped ice crystals in high level cirrus clouds.The current accepted names are circumhorizon arc or lower symmetric 46° plate arc The complete halo is a huge, multi-coloured band running parallel to the horizon with its...
- CoronaCorona (meteorology)In meteorology, a corona is produced by the diffraction of light from either the Sun or the Moon by individual small water droplets of a cloud....
- False sunriseFalse sunriseA false sunrise or dawn sundog is a very particular kind of parhelion, belonging to the optical phenomenon family of halos.It is an atmospheric optical phenomenon associated with the reflection or refraction of sunlight by small ice crystals making up cirrus or cirrostratus clouds in the very...
- False sunsetFalse sunsetA false sunset or sunset sundog is a very particular kind of parhelion, belonging to the optical phenomenon family of halos.It is an atmospheric optical phenomenon associated with the reflection and refraction of sunlight by small ice crystals making up cirrus or cirrostratus clouds in the very...
- Infralateral arcInfralateral arcAn infralateral arc is a rare halo, an optical phenomenon appearing similar to a rainbow under a white parhelic circle...
- Liljequist parhelionLiljequist parhelionA Liljequist parhelion is a rare halo, an optical phenomenon appearing on the parhelic circle approximately ±150-160° from the sun between a 120° parhelion and the anthelion ....
- Moon dogMoon dogA moon dog or moondog is a relatively rare bright circular spot on a lunar halo caused by the refraction of moonlight by hexagonal-plate-shaped ice crystals in cirrus or cirrostratus clouds. Moondogs appear to the left and right of the moon 22° or more distant...
- Moon ringMoon ringA moon ring, also known as a winter halo, is a phenomenon that usually appears in conjunction with a full moon. There appears to be a whitish ring, approximately 10 to 20 times the size of the moon, surrounding the moon and centered on it...
- The Miracle of the SunThe Miracle of the SunThe Miracle of the Sun was an event on 13 October 1917 in which 30,000 to 100,000 people, who were gathered near Fátima, Portugal, claimed to have witnessed extraordinary solar activity....
External links
- Sundogs - Parhelia, Explanations and Images
- Optical Phenomena - Photos of sun dogs
- Starry Night Photography - Sun Dog, Sun Halo, Moon Halo - Some photos and some text
- Photo slideshow
- Sun dogs, 4 Suns in the Sky Together
- Images by Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society
- 4 point Sun dog with complete 360 degree ring in Shubarkurduk, Kazachstan
- Rare sun halo appears on Monday, November 1st, 2010
- SDO Sundog Mystery - A phenomenon that occurred during the launch of the Solar Dynamics ObservatorySolar Dynamics ObservatoryThe Solar Dynamics Observatory is a NASA mission which will observe the Sun for over five years. Launched on February 11, 2010, the observatory is part of the Living With a Star program...