Three Suns in the Sky: The Mystery of Parhelia
| Polish version is here |
Since the dawn of consciousness, humans have gazed at the sky with fascination. Naturally, many celestial phenomena were initially shrouded in mystery. The fascination of ancient cultures with the night sky is evident from how they projected their mythological figures onto it. In Western culture, Greek mythology still dominates this celestial theater: the giant Orion battles Taurus, the Ethiopian princess Andromeda is rescued by Perseus from the sea monster Cetus (associated with Cetus, the Whale), while Cygnus, the Swan, represents Zeus in one of his transformations. The seven nymphs known as the Pleiades, as well as the Hyades, also shine in the night sky. Comets were often regarded as omens of misfortune. Yet, our ancestors observed the daytime sky as well.
Among the many fascinating daylight phenomena, one of the most captivating is parhelia, also known as sundogs or mock suns. This optical event creates the illusion of multiple suns in the sky.
Observations
February 19, 2018, around 11:00 AM – Jaworzno (Poland), garden
urban environment
On this winter day, I stepped outside during a break from other activities. By chance, I witnessed a remarkable sight: to the right of the Sun, a smaller and much fainter “second sun” appeared. Before the phenomenon disappeared, I managed to capture a photograph.
This was a parhelion, also known as a sundog. This phenomenon occurs when sunlight is refracted by hexagonal ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere, typically oriented horizontally as they fall. Parhelia are part of a broader family of atmospheric halo phenomena and usually appear symmetrically on both sides of the Sun. On this occasion, however, only one was distinctly visible. Near the sundog, a faint section of the parhelic circle—a halo that can sometimes stretch across the entire sky—can also be observed.
August 8, 2018, around 7:00 AM – Goczałkowice-Zdrój (Poland)
aboard a train from Katowice to Wisła
This morning brought an unexpected surprise. Looking out the train window, I spotted a well-defined sundog. Despite the less-than-ideal conditions—photographing through the window of a moving train with a phone camera—the image still captures the sundog’s coloration, caused by the dispersion of sunlight into its component colors. This effect is not always visible.
October 7, 2020, around 1:00 PM – Zabrze (Poland)
urban environment
Even during everyday activities, it's worth occasionally glancing at the sky—you might witness something remarkable. While moving between university buildings, I was fortunate to observe the striking phenomenon of three suns.
February 21, 2020, around 3:00 PM – Jaworzno (Poland)
urban environment
A winter walk turned out to be even more enjoyable than usual when I spotted beautifully defined and colorful sundogs on both sides of our daytime star.
Sundogs are a stunning and captivating sight, naturally drawing human attention for centuries.
In the past, this phenomenon was often interpreted as a supernatural omen with diverse meanings. A notable example is a woodcut originally published in the incunabulum “Liber cronicarum cum figuris ymaginibus ab inicio mundi” (commonly known as the Nuremberg Chronicle), first printed in 1493 (Figure 1). The illustration most likely depicts the same phenomenon that anyone can observe with their own eyes.
Marek Ples