APOD: 2022 December 21 - Sun Halo at Sixty three Degrees North

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the December 21st Hump Day and Winter Solstice edition of Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD): "Sun Halo at Sixty three Degrees North." I've been to 53° North, but not 63. It even looks cold there. But at least there are Sun halos.

A Sun halo is formed by hexagonal ice crystals refracting light in the sky. The prism effect (when you can see it) is such that the rainbow colors go from red on the inside to violet on the outside. And given that the Sun is low on the horizon, we can't see the full halo in this image. But you get the idea.

The ice crystals behind Sun halos are usually found in cirrostratus clouds (3-6 miles up), but a more likely culprit for today's APOD is a snow cannon. There's a ski resort on the mountain to the right of the Sun's location. Either way, its still pretty.