Sun Pillar

This is a vertical shaft of light that appears most often at sunrise or sunset. It occurs as the sun’s rays are reflected (not refracted as with Sun Dogs) off the six-sided ice crystals oscillating within cirrus clouds. Sun pillars are seen best within a few minutes of sunrise or sunset. Initially the have about the same colour and width as the sun, but sunpillars will gradually change their colour from orange-white to red-orange.