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Glories
A passenger on a plane up in the air watching the aircraft’s shadow on a cloud can sometimes see a glory - a parti-colored ring of light surrounding the shadow. The glory is caused by when the cloud’s water droplets reflect and bend light waves from the sun, dividing them into different colors. Like a rainbow, perception of each glory is dependent on the person viewing it. Glories, also known as pilot’s bows, are most often seen by travelers in the air. However, sometimes a lucky person on the surface, perhaps one standing on a mountaintop in early morning, may see the shadow of his or her own head wreathed in glory on a cloud or fogbank. Sometimes it has as many as five colored rings as well as a fogbow - a faint, white ring. Unfortunately, only the wearer can see this amazing event.


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