Across the world, there are naturally occurring optical illusions that captivate spectators. Cloud formations can sometimes make it seem like there's an ocean or a UFO in the sky. Whether it is salt ...

The science behind natural optical phenomena—colors in the sky, rainbows, halos, coronas, iridescence, glories, glitter patterns and auroras—will be the topic of a free talk at Rochester Institute of ...

MISSOULA, Mont. — While up in the mountains, have you ever looked down on a cloud or fog bank below and seen concentric rings of light surrounding your shadow? A viewer recently shared a photo of this ...

Earth's passage through the plane of Saturn's rings, occurring roughly every 15 years, causes the rings to appear nearly edge-on. The next such event in March 2025 will be poorly observable due to ...

An ISS astronaut captured a rare lunar halo above the Indian Ocean, showing a thin glowing arc above Earth's blue edge.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A optical illusion appeared off the First Coast this week, making it seem as though a ship was hovering above and out of the water. The phenomenon, known as a superior mirage, ...

Optics is a branch of physics that involves the properties of light and its interaction with matter. Reflection, refraction and diffraction are different ways light can behave based on the conditions ...

A video of a unique optical phenomenon known as a "glory" spotted from a plane has gone viral on TikTok. Heather Reedy, a 37-year-old registered nurse based in Virginia, spotted the mesmerizing sight ...

A new study explores the behavior of photons, the elementary particles of light, as they encounter boundaries where material properties change rapidly over time. This research uncovers remarkable ...

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. SAN DIEGO — A parhelia hovered above the ...