The frozen Optics

 

Extreme cold and what we see

   
When we think of a mirage, we usually think of a hot desert. In the arctic, though, the thermal layering of the cold air causes a similar effect. The effect is the opposite of a heat mirage though. Here, you can see that the mountain looks to be up-side down and mushroom shaped.
 
 
Here. the bottom mountain looks to have a twin growing out of the top. This is simply an optical illusion
 
 
 
Sundogs are caused by the light of the sun being reflected off of ice crystals in the atmosphere. this causes a ring around the sun with rainbow colors at either side .
Picture by Don Brown
 
Sometimes, sundogs can be very spectacular, as seen here.
Picture by Don Brown