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Photographer’s Note

I witnessed this phenomenon in the day preceeding a warmfront (followed by a more complex atmospheric front system which brought snow in the coming days). I took the picture from the road that passes through the village of "Pestera". It's located in S-E Transylvania. Here is a short description of this phenomenon:

Solar parhelia

Sun dogs usually appear in pairs, and are loyal to the sun (as moon dogs are loyal to the moon), sitting on each side of the solar orb along a horizontal line through the solar disk. Sun dogs appear in January, April, August, and October, the month does not really matter, but they are most regularly seen close to their solar master during winter months when the sun is low in the sky and ice crystals in the atmosphere are more common, but we can see them in any of the other seasons whenever cirrus clouds fuzz the sky above.
Sun dogs, or mock suns, are technically called solar parhelia (parhelia meaning "with the sun") and appear as bright bursts of light formed when sunlight passes through ice crystals at the proper angle. Usually, cirrus clouds in front of the sun produce sun dogs, but other ice clouds, such as ice fog and diamond dust, may also generate them. Sun dogs are sometimes so brilliant that dazzled observers mistake them for the sun. They are often bright white but may show a partial spectrum of color with the red wavelengths on the edge nearest the sun. Sun dogs often have comet-like appearance with a bluish-white tail facing away from the sun.
Sun dogs, or mock suns, are technically called solar parhelia (parhelia meaning "with the sun") and appear as bright bursts of light formed when sunlight passes through ice crystals at the proper angle. Usually, cirrus clouds in front of the sun produce sun dogs, but other ice clouds, such as ice fog and diamond dust, may also generate them. Sun dogs are sometimes so brilliant that dazzled observers mistake them for the sun. They are often bright white but may show a partial spectrum of color with the red wavelengths on the edge nearest the sun. Sun dogs often have comet-like appearance with a bluish-white tail facing away from the sun.

Source: http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/elements/sundog.htm

Here is the EXIF:

File: - E:\My Camera\Pestera\Sun dog.jpg

ExposureProgram - Manual control
ISOSpeedRatings - 100
ShutterSpeedValue - 1/640 seconds
ApertureValue - F 11.00
ExposureBiasValue - 0.00
MeteringMode - Multi-segment
Flash - Not fired, compulsory flash mode
FocalLength - 70 mm

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Additional Photos by Eduard Baak (snowfalken) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 174 W: 4 N: 228] (1108)
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