Thursday 6 November 2008

Rainbow, a Sign of Hope





I got these photos from my neighbour, who saw this rainbow over our street.
A rainbow is an optical and meteorological phenomenon that causes a spectrum of light to appear in the sky when the Sun shines onto droplets of moisture in the Earth's atmosphere. They take the form of a multicoloured arc, with red on the outer part of the arch and violet on the inner section of the arch.
More rarely, a secondary rainbow is seen, which is a second, fainter arc, outside the primary arc, with colours in the opposite order, that is, with violet on the outside and red on the inside.

A rainbow spans a continuous spectrum of colours, but due to significant overlap of differing wavelengths, these are not spectral colours. Despite the continuity of the spectrum, the sequence is traditionally quantised. The most commonly cited and remembered sequence, in English, is Newton's sevenfold red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. "Roy G. Biv" and "Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain" are popular mnemonics. Rainbows can be caused by other forms of water than rain, including mist, spray, dew, fog, and ice.
Moreover, rainbows can have shapes other than a bow (arc), including stripes, circles, or even flames.

Klaus, Sandy, Ivar, Wren, Fishing Guy & Louise
Thank you so much for this great meme. For other wonderful skies all over the world click on logo or here


 
 
 
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52 comments:

kjpweb said...

WoW! That is intense! Pad your neighbor on the shoulder from me!
Cheers, Klaus

Gigi Ann said...

That is one beautiful rainbow. I love pictures of rainbows. And your commentary was interesting to read, brings back memories of high school days. ;)

Maria Verivaki said...

i once saw a rainbow as strong as this one - the whole town talked about it for a long time after it disappeared

Unknown said...

How truly brilliant! LOVE the rainbow! LOVE the blog header picture today also. You do great work! I LOVE your blog!

Photo Cache said...

I enjoy the little nuances in color from one image to another. Thank you to your neighbor for sharing this.

Hope you have a relaxing weekend.

Patty said...

The photos are beautiful. We don't get to see a rainbow often enough. Just took a cake out of the oven. cooling it and hoping to frost it before I go to school to pick up Audrey.

The Weaver of Grass said...

Yes reader wil, after yesterday's election I think there is a ray of hope there somewhere.

 gmirage said...

Great rainbow image...it is never to get one thats so clear!

My kids always see one at home every morning, that's the sunrays passing through our aquarium. =)

Happy Skywatching! - ViennaDaily

Anne said...

Look at those clours!! So clear...
Nice weekend from a norwegian girl.

Woody said...

Great Photo! Happy SWF

Texas Travelers said...

WOW!
That is strong.
Beautiful.

Thanks for sharing.

Troy and Martha

PS: Notice the sky is brighter on one side of the rainbow and darker on the other.

naturglede/Randi Lind said...

That was some spesial photoes. Have a nice weekend:)

Rune Eide said...

I can't complain about those - taking good rainbows are not easy. Just a bit of nitpicking: One usually omits Indigo today since it is extremely difficult to separate from blue and violet. It was probably included for superstitious reasons (holy numbers and that kind of thing).

Sorry, I'll step down from the box...

bobbie said...

These are beautiful photos! And I enjoyed your discussion of rainbows.

Ivar Østtun said...

Very intense colors. I wish you and your neigbour a colourful weekend :-)

Louise said...

That is a BRIGHT rainbow! I love the last one with the little cloud in front.

MumbaiiteAnu said...

Beautiful rainbow in a golden sky. I've always seen rainbow photos in blue skies. This is my first one in a golden sky.
Looks fabulous.

Dirkjogt said...

Altijd fantastisch een regenboog te zien, bedankt om deze met ons te delen!

EG CameraGirl said...

Good information about rainbows, Wil! Thanks. I seldom see them in the skies where I live. I'm not sure if it's because they are rare here or if I'm not paying enough attention. ;-)

Jane Hards Photography said...

Fascinating, I remeber the rhme form school. Beauful and so sharp.

imac said...

Sure was a beautifully captured Rainbow.

Brad Myers said...

Good sky watch photos, the colors are stunning.

Lilli & Nevada said...

WOW! that is one amazing photo, took my breath away

Ivar Østtun said...

Hi again. My exposuretime was 1647 sec. That is about 27 minutes. I will try for a longer exposure next time. I think this is cool.

Leslie: said...

A miracle would bring us a rainbow today! lol Grey skies with lots of wet coming out of the clouds! :D

Pat - Arkansas said...

Your neighbor got some wonderful photos of the rainbow. Extremely sharp on the colors. It's difficult for me to remember the order of the colors even with a reminder such as Roy G. Biv. Thanks for the good information.

Your new header photo is beautiful, although I do miss the windmills. :)

Jeanne said...

Great captures especially that last one with the cloud passing in front. Love it!

Janice Thomson said...

Stunning rainbow photos Wil! Even with all the rain we get here we don't see them that often.

Gaelyn said...

You're neighbor did good.
I love rainbows. I see them everyday when the morning sun hits my window full of crystals. I just don't see enough of them in the sky.

Larry D said...

Excellent photos for skywatch!

Laura ~Peach~ said...

WOWOWOWOW Wonderful bright colors I absolutely LOVE rainbows you neighbor took wonderful photos!
Happy SWF!

Rinkly Rimes said...

When SA freed itself from Apartheid it called itself The Rainbow Nation. So your photos fit-in well with the election.

BNS said...

That certainly is a bright rainbow. Beautiful!

esnorway said...

nice pics have good weekend

Pea in a Pod said...

OMG!!! Intense is the word that came to my mind right away:) LOVE em all!!! You're lucky to see those kind of skies..

Mine's, HERE. If you get a chance:)
Happy SWF!

Rune Eide said...

Me again: You were quite right of course. And you have still got to take the bus from nearby.

Gemma Wiseman said...

Stunning rainbow shots! The colours are so unbelievably strong! I think my favourite is the last one with the touch of drifting cloud!

The Good Life in Virginia said...

love these shots of the rainbow...simply wonderful

Indrani said...

WOW! Beautiful! I have never got it so bright.

Arija said...

Wow! That really is a great capture. Glad you posted them.

Rambling Woods said...

The colors of the rainbow against the browner tones of the sky..amazing.

Aisha said...

You have such awesome skywatch shots on your blog! SO unbelievably beautiful!

Wayfaring Wanderer said...

I never knew some of those facts you added. Thanks for sharing.

AphotoAday said...

Oh wow -- I'd "kill" for some shots like that...

DeniseinVA said...

That is one perfect rainbow and very information post. Your photos are lovely.

Anonymous said...

Very beautiful and unusually intense colors in these rainbow photos. Amazing. Thanks for the post, and happy skywatching!

Angie said...

Simply glorious! Say thanks to your neighbour from me :)

Jeanette said...

Gday Wil.Wow!!! Beatiful photo's of the rainbow the colours are so vibrant.

Jo's-D-Eyes said...

Hi Wil,
very impressive rainbow & sky, I like 'hope'in all ways, in photography in words,

Happy weekend

ChrissyM said...

Wow what amazing color!!! I love the last picture especially, they are all great. Awesome!

Anonymous said...

Wow! Wonderful rainbows. I really like the last one with the little cloud in front of it.

Jane Hards Photography said...

You really captured the depth of colour with these, epscually t he last one.