Earth & SkyGreek → English
Parhelion
/pɑrˈhiːliən/noun
A bright spot of light appearing to one side of the sun, formed by ice crystals in high cloud.
The Greek roots
παρά
pará
beside, alongside
ἥλιος
hḗlios
sun
Literally: “beside the sun”
The story of the word
Ice crystals in cirrus bend the light twenty-two degrees, so the false sun turns up at a fixed distance from the real one, often in a matching pair. Aristotle described parhelia in the Meteorologica. A striking display over Stockholm in 1535 was painted on a panel, and that picture happens to be the oldest colour image of the city.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → English
- First recorded
- 17th century
Same family
heliotropeheliumperihelionaphelion
In a sentence
A parhelion burned on either side of the low winter sun.
Sailors called them sundogs and read them as a sign of cold coming.