Pollen corona / Pine tree (Pinus)
- Short information:
- Well-defined knots at low sun elevations
- Most common pollen corona
- Between end of April and beginning of June
Photograph © by Richard Löwenherz, Klettwitz, 10.05.98; 19.03 CET, Sun elevation 4.1°, 135-mm-lens
Description:
Pine tree coronae are probably the most observed type of pollen coronae. One of the reasons is probably that there is a large number of pine tree forests in central Germany and the pollen can be carried by the wind over hundreds of kilometres. So, also in regions where there are only few pine trees, pine tree pollen coronae can appear. The best period for observing them is between the end of April and the beginning of June. In 1998, after a longer dry period, extremely bright coronae appeared around the mid of May, which were also noticed by amateurs.
Simulation of a pollen corona with strongly vertically orientated pine tree pollen. Sun elevation: a 0°, b 30°, c 60°, d 90°.
Taken from Applied Optics Nr. 21, 1994, computer simulation by Tränkle/Mielke
© AKM e.V.