Sun halo over SE WI
© Gin Prince
Monday afternoon brought a treat to sky watchers across SE Wisconsin; the sun was surrounded by a beautiful halo.

TMJ4 viewers sent the Storm Team lots of great photos.

A halo looks like a whitish ring surrounding the sun. Occasionally, onlookers can see some color in the halo, most often a reddish band in the inner portion of the ring.

This phenomena happens on days where high, thin clouds are present. These high cirrus clouds, which develop above 20,000 feet, are are composed of ice crystals. Halos are typically seen when these six-sided ice crystals have a random orientation. The sunlight is then dispersed through the ice crystals and the light is refracted, creating the halo.

Sun halo over SE WI
© Chuck Stephen
Halos can also be seen around the moon, if conditions are right.

We love to see your weather photos from around Southeast Wisconsin! Share your photos with us at weather@tmj4.com.