Why Do the Skies Light Up at Night?

Atmospheric light phenomena are like when the sky turns into a glowing canvas at night. Imagine sunlight bouncing off tiny particles in the air, just like a ball bouncing between walls, sometimes it lights up the sky with colors or shapes. This happens because of how light interacts with things like water droplets, ice crystals, and dust in the atmosphere.

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Examples

  1. When you see a bright patch beside the sun after a snowstorm, that's a sun dog.
  2. A glowing ring around the moon at night is called a halo.
  3. Colors dancing in the sky during a storm are caused by light bouncing off tiny water droplets.

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