Apr 3 2023 - Rainbows

 

Hawaii has the most rainbows in the world. The Secrets of the Best Rainbows on Earth, has declared Hawaii the rainbow capital of the world. It has rainbow arcs on the license plates. The islands of Kauai, Maui and Oahu are the best places and the Moa Valley is known as the Valley of the Rainbows. Alaska and Yosemite National Park are the next two and then the fourth is Niagara Falls. A triple rainbow is possible there and also a 360-degree rainbow. The rainbow is seen in a circular formation instead of semicircular.  The Skyline Tower deck is the place to see a circular rainbow.  Australia and Ireland complete the list of top places to see rainbows.  What are the world records for rainbows?  The longest lasting rainbow was almost 9 hours in Taipei in 2017.  The most rainbows at once is covered in an article by Country Living and it was 5 rainbows.  That's a Supernumerary Rainbow.  This one was verified by NASA.  But the photo of 8 rainbows in 2014 was investigated by SNOPES and is false.   Which record would you prefer?  To see the longest lasting rainbow or to catch the biggest rainbow trout?  Or perhaps to see the smallest rainbow in the world.  This occurs on the butt of the peacock spider in Australia.   Here's an image retrieved from Pinterest. But it looks more photoshop than photo.  The second one comes with a blog post and appears authentic.    "After being up at Niagara Falls back in 14 I had to come back for more and wanted to be there when the lights on the Canadian side light up the falls. The night we arrived the light were turned up and got to see some amazing rainbows. The lights would change color and it was a sight to see a rainbow being different colors along its length. In addition to the floodlight bows I also got nice rainbows from natural sunlight and using the super wide angle field of view with my GoPro camera I got nice full circle rainbows. For anyone who is a waterfall or rainbow chaser. Niagara Falls is the place to go and falls are BEST on the Canadian side and this is the perfect bucket list item." Author: Michael Ellestad, Ohio, USA This reflection image comes from a few years ago in First Canadian Place.   Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

My Recent Rainbows

What are those 'rainbow spots' I've seen recently?  I see them later in the day when the sun is lowering in the sky and there are wispy clouds nearby.  With a lot of lake effects in the Niagara Peninsula, I've assumed this has to do with the moisture from the lake in the sky. Doing a little searching, this might be cloud iridescence or irisation. The term comes from Iris, the Greek personification of the rainbow.  These aren't spectacular, like an arc'd rainbow over-reaching the sky, but they are compelling.  More about rainbows can be seen at this site called topics.co.uk.  They say that rainbows take many forms.  Multiple bows, bows that cross, red bows, twinned bows, coloured fringes, dark bands, spokes and more.  I found another site  with all the types and pictures.  The explanation given:   "Sky watchers sometimes report seeing rainbow colors within clouds. These colorful clouds are called iridescent clouds. When you see a cloud like this, you know there are especially tiny ice crystals or water droplets in the air. Larger ice crystals produce solar or lunar halos, but tiny ice crystals or water droplets cause light to be diffracted– spread out – creating this rainbow-like effect in the clouds". Through the ages, rainbows have been noted for their beauty and mystical  appearance - considered a bridge to the heavens, messenger, archer's bow, or serpent.  Wikipedia says the diversity of rainbows myths are far-reaching.  Does each of our eyes see a different rainbow?  Yes - two people do not see the exactly same rainbow even if they are standing next to each other.  The same is true of your eyes. Just a few inches can make this happen. Is the LGBTQ use of rainbows related to the cultures that hold forth that rainbows are able to reverse sexuality?  No - the rainbow flag was created in 1978 by Gilbert Baker, and is considered to be inspired by Judy Garland's Over the Rainbow song and college campuses flying rainbow flags in the 1960s demonstrating for world peace. What is the Mile-long rainbow flag?  This was created by Baker for the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in 1994 - it was 2 km long. The flag utilized the basic six colours and measured thirty feet wide.  It has the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest flag.