Paris is undoubtedly one of the most romantic cities in the world and adding to the charm and magic of the French capital was an uncommon natural phenomenon known as a rainbow fire. A spectrum of colors emerged for five minutes on March 17, bathing the Parisian skyline in a rare horizontal rainbow.
The unusual natural display was spotted by Parisian and amateur photographer Bertrand Kulik from the window of his apartment. Kulik quickly grabbed his camera and snapped up the marvel, framing it against the iconic landmark — the Eiffel Tower.
"I have never seen a rainbow like that before. This light phenomenon looked like a rising aurora over Paris. When I saw it, I had to react very fast. I was very impressed by this beauty and I knew that I could not miss it," said Kulik per a Daily Mail report.
The "fire rainbow" covered the city for five minutes before disappearing. Heavy rains and stormy weather in Paris also contributed to the horizontal rainbow being created.
"It was only possible to see it for few minutes. Often I am waiting to catch some weather pictures. Every day I hope to see some atmospheric phenomenons like that. The day was tormented with a stormy sky. Even in a big city it's possible to see some amazing natural phenomenon. It was a very turbulent day and I will remember it for a long time," noted Kulik.
This atmospheric phenomenon is caused by a combination of factors, which include the sun's position and the shape of ice crystals in the air. Fire rainbows are formally called circumhorizon arcs and occur when Cirrus clouds are high enough to form plate-shaped ice crystals.
In reality they are not rainbows but a halo effect; however, they are referred to as fire rainbows. When the sun's rays are at the apt angle and hit the top of these plates, it results in a splitting of the rays into different colors that are viewable from the ground.
Fire rainbows are common in the U.S. but are rarer in Europe as the sun is not often at the correct angle needed to create the effect. The arc appears only when the sunlight shines at a specific angle and filters through a thin veil of wispy clouds, which are at a height of 20,000 to 25,000 feet.
