JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Weather enthusiasts and sky gazers on the First Coast were treated to a celestial spectacle on Friday night as a halo adorned the moon, accompanied by the presence of Jupiter.
A halo, described as a luminous ring encircling either the sun or the moon, emerges when a delicate layer of cirrus clouds, positions approximately 20,000 to 30,000 feet above Earth. The phenomenon results from the presence of minuscule ice crystals in the Earth's atmosphere, refracting light and creating the luminous halo. Halos are often regarded as a classic indicator of potential rainfall or impending storms in the surrounding area, which when you check the local forecast on the First Coast, is accurate in this situation with rainfall expected about 36 hours after the photos were taken.
What made this nocturnal spectacle even more extraordinary, was the proximity of Jupiter to the moon Friday evening. Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, appeared to embrace the moon, maintaining a distance of approximately five degrees from it as they gracefully traversed the night sky.
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