The phenomenon called “solar halo”, in which a large circle of light forms around the sun, appeared in the sky above the Tokachidake mountain range on the morning of August 27. This photo was captured at an area near the mountain summit station of the Hokusei Mountain Lift at Nishi 1 Sen Kita in the Northern Hokkaido town of Nakafurano.

Solar halos are an atmospheric phenomenon in which sunlight is bent and reflected when it hits granular ice crystals suspended in a layer of thin clouds (cirrostratus) high in the sky, over five thousand meters above ground level.

According to the Asahikawa Local Meteorological Office, on this day with an inflow of cold air, cirrostratus clouds expanded throughout the overall Furano region, resulting in weather conditions that made it easy to observe the solar halo phenomenon. This is why the ring around the sun appeared so crisp and sharp. In Nakafurano, the solar halo was only visible during the morning hours.