Dew heiligenschein
Text: Claudia Hinz

 Heiligenschein

Dew heiligenschein
Photo: © Peter Krämer, Bochum / Germany

If you position yourself with your back towards the morning sun and your own shadow falls on a meadow wet with dew, you will often see a light around the shadow of your head. When you go some steps this so-called heiligenschein moves together with you. It is only visible when sun, observer and his shadow are positioned in a line. This is the reason why each observer has a heiligenschein of his own and can only perceive this one. Even around the shadow of a hand reaching out to the side this light cannot be seen any more.

A heiligenschein is to be seen best when the shadow of the observer is at least 15m long and falls on short grass or clover and the meadow appears to be white or grey because it is wet with dew. The following hints make it easier to find the dew hei1iqenschein:

• Let your eyes wander about the whole meadow and watch how the brightness increases near your own shadow
• Walk some steps - - the light follows you
• Places where the grass was not very bright get illuminated as the shadow approaches
• Compare your own shadow to that of another person; the Heiligenschein is visible only around the shadow of your own head

A heiligenschein becomes visible because the light rays hit a drop of dew and get focused in it. At the background of the droplet (blade of grass, a leaf, earth, etc) the focused ray of light is reflected and. a great part of the light is scattered into all directions.