3D Weather: Breaking down sun dog phenomenon

The sky can produce some incredible sights, and one of those features is an optical phenomenon known as a sun dog or parhelion. Watch the video above as Meteorologist Mitchel Coombs breaks down this phenomenon.

Sun dogs consist of one or two bright spots which flank the sun on one or both sides along a 22-degree halo.

Sun dogs develop similar to other optical phenomena such as rainbows. However, there are a few key differences between rainbows and sun dogs. For example, sunlight passes through water droplets and splits into colors to develop a rainbow. Sun dogs, on the other hand, form when sunlight passes through hexagonal ice crystals found in high-level cirrus and cirrostratus clouds. As light passes through the aligned crystals, it refracts back together, and the point where it connects results in a sun dog.

Sun dogs display in a variety of ways. Sometimes they are colorful lights with a reddish hue; other times, they are so bright and intense, it looks like there is another sun or two in the sky. This is where they get the nickname “mock sun.”

Despite the beauty that sun dogs can provide, they can be precursors to rain or snow and indicate an approaching storm system.

Sun dogs are capable of being seen at any time of the year, but the best time to see them is when the sun is low on the horizon. This can be in the evening or when it is low in general, such as the month of January.

If you have photos of unique optical phenomena such as the sun dog, send them to us at nbcmontana.com/chimein.

If you have any weather or science-related questions you would like answered, email those to mrcoombs@sbgtv.com or reach out to Meteorologist Mitchel Coombs on social media. On Twitter, go to @MitchelNBCMT or on Facebook at Meteorologist Mitchel Coombs.