Interesting Photo of the Day: Colors Over Everest

Interesting Photos

Sure, you’ve seen photos of Mt. Everest. You may have even seen a rainbow over Mt. Everest. But have you ever seen an upside-down rainbow over Mt. Everest?

This shot—which sacrifices underexposure on the mountain to emphasize the dazzling color of the rainbow—was taken by Neha Gadhari, a hiker and NatGeo community member who stumbled upon the sight by fluke.

“We all were reluctant to rush back down after experiencing a sunrise behind Everest. So, we took more stops than usual and were gifted by this rare optical phenomena. A circumhorizontal arc combined with a 22-degree halo.”

For those curious about the science behind the optics, it’s called a circumzenithal arc—and it’s actually much more common than rainbows are.