Wellington Graced by Rare 'Horizontal Rainbow'
December 27, 2022
PHOTO: Nick Tyler/Supplied
“They were rainbow colours but didn’t appear to be rainbow-like,” she said.
It appeared like a paint brush stroke among wispy clouds, in the otherwise clear day over the capital.
“I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
The “cloud-bow” is actually called cloud iridescence, MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane explained.
The phenomenon occurred when sunlight passed through small rain or ice droplets in the cloud and caused light to spread out.