Elliptische Ringe (EE37)

When fall streaks descend from medium or high clouds, white elliptical rings can occasionally form. Due to their close proximity to the sun, usually 6° or less, observation and photography are greatly hindered, as this area is strongly outshone by the sun. Therefore, it is difficult to say how rare elliptical rings really are. One or two rings of varying diameters are most frequently observed. Very rarely, more rings can form. In Finland, elliptical displays with 4 or 5 rings have been observed (5 rings on 25.06.1996 by Mika Silanpää). 

According to current theory, elliptical rings are formed by reflection on very thin plates with blunt pyramidal attachments in the middle, which must be oriented almost exactly horizontally. Due to the different reflection angles on the inclined and thus differently thick base surface, ellipses are formed instead of circles. However, with this type of halo, the simulations do not entirely match the observed rings, so further investigation is needed here.