Abstract

Rainbows are part of the myths and legends of most cultures. In our scientific culture, many of their obvious features can be understood from a few simple principles. The principles are demonstrated, and rainbows are produced by a single drop of water and an array of two million tiny glass spheres. Slides are shown of rainbows produced in unusual circumstances: in the spray of a breaking wave, the dew on a golf green, water droplets floating on the surface of a lake, and the spout of a humpback whale. Other photos show strange and unusual rainbows including bows with intersecting arcs, white rainbows, red rainbows, and invisible rainbows never seen by a human eye.

© 1987 Optical Society of America