Rainbows appear in arch shape is a common myth that was shattered recently after a video shared online showed a full circle rainbow, mesmerizing the netizens.
The 28-second video shared from the Twitter handle of Wonder of Science, was captured from a high rise building and showed a full circle rainbow, extending from skies to the ocean below.
Rainbows are circles. pic.twitter.com/ygUByAh1Gu
— Wonder of Science (@wonderofscience) June 4, 2020
The netizens were surprised to witness once in a blue moon event as it garnered 400,000 views so far.
The natural phenomenon amused the online social media users who were unaware of full circle rainbow and asked as where the mesmerizing view occurred and how they could witness it.
I never knew that!
— Terri Bartoloni (@BartoloniTerri) June 5, 2020
Where in the world can we see like this
— ANKIT (@ankitmathur4u) June 5, 2020
OK I’ve never seen a full circle rainbow like this before
— Mr. Dark (@Century209) June 5, 2020
Some even shared the phenomenon that caused the full circle rainbow view.
According to met officials, the key factor that determines how much of a rainbow we see is our visual reference point. In most cases we only see less than half of a circle – the characteristic rainbow arc we are all familiar with.
Double rainbows occur when light bounces inside the water droplet more than once before escaping…
The spectrum of the second arch will be reversed…
Sometimes third or fourth rainbows can be seen……! pic.twitter.com/KjAGEYIXHA
— Its_Possible (@ItsRam_1729) June 5, 2020
When you are in an airplane flying following the mountain ranges of California, you can see tons of rainbow circles in the canyons when the sun is right
— Michell (@MichellBasler) June 5, 2020
“A rainbow’s centre is directly opposite the position of the sun in the sky, so more of a rainbow can be seen as the sun approaches the horizon. Therefore you will normally see the greatest percentage of a rainbow (50%) at sunrise or sunset,” they explained.
Although the full circle rainbow can be observed from higher altitudes like mountain tops, the best chances are for pilots who have a much better view from up front than windows from the cabin.