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© Kenosha News/Diane GilesA sun halo was visible Sunday afternoon in the Kenosha area. It is unusual to see a sun halo in the summer, according to the National Weather Service.
If you happened to look up during Sunday's Kenosha Civic Veterans Parade, you might have seen more than an escaped balloon.

A number of people were lucky enough to see a rare summer atmospheric event: a halo.

Completely encircling the sun was what appeared to be a thin, pale rainbow.

"I'm really surprised to see this at this time of the year," said Justin Schultz, meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Sullivan, Wis. "This is usually more of a winter (phenomenon)."

Schultz said that farther up in the atmosphere that afternoon, it was cold enough for ice crystals to form.

This optical projection was created when the light was refracted through the ice crystals in the higher-level cirrus clouds.

It's a phenomenon similar to a sundog, which only takes place in the winter.