Column light mystery in the sky of Latvia

The mysterious high-rise columns that appear in the Lithuanian sky in late 2008 are a hot topic on European amateur astronomical forums.

The controversy comes from a photo of Aigar Truhins, a resident of Sigulda town. When the phenomenon happened, Truhins's son exclaimed, "Aliens, Dad?" "It looks like that," Truhins recalls.

Photo column light taken by Truhins.

Truhins' photos capture a picture of high-light columns hanging in the sky, with a narrow concentration of light converging and slightly bent above.

Truhins himself said that this is the phenomenon of light from street lights shining on the sky and reflected through the atmosphere. The photos also show that the source of the light column seems to come from street lights.

According to some atmospheric optics experts, this is a normal phenomenon called "ice crystals" that can occur in cold and dry air often appearing in Europe in the winter.

Snapshot of the "Parry Arc" curve.One of the interesting optical phenomena in the atmosphere.

However, some other comments suggest that light columns cannot be explained so simply because there are light lines bent above. According to them, this is a rare phenomenon because so far science has only recorded a few such cases.

Some other pictures Truhins has taken: