Sun Pillar 19/03/2005 - Eric Walker

A beautiful upper-type sun pillar taken at 18:20h on Saturday 19 March 2005 from Conon Bridge. The sky was still bright blue with high wisps of white cloud and the horizon just starting to turn golden. Horizontal plate type crystals form most sun pillars. Upper sun pillars result when light rays are externally and internally reflected downwards (ref. www.sundog.clara.co.uk/halo/pillar.htm). When crystals are below a line between the observer and the sun, they can reflect light upward to form a pillar apparently beneath it - a lower sun pillar. www.astrophotos.plus.com