Rare Fogbow Makes a Striking Appearance in Western NSW

Amateur photographer Marie Johnson captured a rare sight in western New South Wales: a fogbow. Johnson, a resident of Cobar, had never witnessed the phenomenon before spotting the white, fuzzy arc stretching across her property. "I've never seen one. Never, ever seen one in my life," she said, expressing her amazement at the unexpected natural display.

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I've never seen one. Never, ever seen one in my life.

Initially mistaking it for a "big white rainbow," Johnson shared her photos on social media, where others identified it as a fogbow. The optical phenomenon, which faded after about half an hour, is similar to a rainbow but is created by much smaller moisture droplets found in fog, rather than raindrops.

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This is just sitting right on our farm; it was amazing.

According to Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Jonathan Howe, fogbows are uncommon in Australia, especially in warmer, drier regions like western NSW. He explained that fogbows require fog, not just mist, and that such conditions are less frequent in western NSW compared to eastern parts of the state. The lower angle of the sun during winter also contributes to their appearance in southern parts of the country. Howe noted that even rarer are lunar fogbows, which occur at night under specific lunar and atmospheric conditions.

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Then a few other people came on and travellers, [and I learned] it's called a fogbow.