APOD: 2022 November 27 - Supernumerary Rainbows over New Jersey

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the First Sunday of Advent edition of Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD): "Supernumerary Rainbows over New Jersey." I remember Hurricane Florence quite well (2018). But the skies over North Carolina didn't hold any surprises like this. The term 'supernumerary' simply means exceeding the usual number. So a dual rainbow ... I've seen those ... would be a supernumerary rainbow. But I haven't seen five.

This image made its first appearance on APOD back in October 2018 as the remnants of Hurricane Florence passed New Jersey. What causes supernumerary rainbows? Simple physics. Light itself is both particle (e.g. photon) and wave. Just like ripples generated when a stone is thrown into a pond, light waves can reflect off of and be interfered with by raindrops.