Rare 'ice halo' appears in the sky over Red River, New Mexico

A rare and complex ice halo appeared in the sky above New Mexico on Friday, as a record breaking arctic blast continued to make its way across the country.

The optical phenomenon was photographed above the town of Red River, which has experienced sub-zero temperatures in recent days, according to the . Ice crystals suspended in the air interact with sunlight, creating a dazzling display of rings and arcs. The halos can be created either by sunlight or moonlight, and often occur within 24 hours before precipitation is expected.

Joshua Thomas, a photographer from Texas, captured the image of the New Mexico ice halo, according to UPI. The U.S. National Weather Service of La Crosse, Wisconsin, then utilized Thomas' photo to create an informational diagram that points out each of the components of the ice halo.

Appearance: It is an extremely rare optical phenomenon produced by light interacting with ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere, resulting in a wide variety of colored or white rings, arcs and spots in the sky

The multiple arcs that comprise the halo can be easily identified in the image, as well as the Sun pillar and a parhelion, commonly referred to as a "sun dog" or "mock sun." Appearing when light shines through a thin cloud of hexagonal ice crystals falling with their principal axes vertical, parhelia present as luminous spots in the sky, 22 degrees to either side of the sun.

Many of the details that are apparent in Thomas' photograph are exceedingly rare, including the helic, infralateral, and supralateral arcs. More commonly, ice halos form a simple ring around the Sun or Moon, becoming much rarer as they increase in complexity. Some arcs are infrequently observed in ice halos due to the quality of the crystals involved, which can impair the displays if they are imperfectly formed. For example, the rays which create 46 degree halos are often blocked by column crystal end faces, which are usually poorly formed, making the 22 degree halo far more common than its counterpart.

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