A BUDDING Solihull photographer has snapped a picture of a rare solar phenomenon.
Sandhya Kashyap contacted the The Observer claiming she had captured pictures of two suns in the sky over Acocks Green.
Sending in the snaps she took at around 4pm on February 14, Sandhya said the phenomenon fell on the seventh day of the Hindu month Maagha and marked the Hindu festival Ratha Sapthami – the birthday of the Sun god Surya.
But a Professor from the University of Warwick explained there were not actually two suns in the sky – but three.
Examining the picture Professor Sandra Chapman from the university’s Centre for Fusion, Space and Astrophysics told the Observer that the pictures showed three ‘suns’ – the actual sun (pictured left), a refraction of the sun inside the camera lens (pink umbrella shape), and a ‘sun dog’ (second, smaller sun).
‘Sun dogs’ are atmospheric phenomenon that occurs when light hits ice crystals in the atmosphere, creating bright spots or ‘second suns’ on either side of the sun.
Have you snapped something interesting in the borough? Send your pictures to [email protected]
