A police officer wearing a protective mask walks past the portrait of late communist leader Mao Zedong (not pictured) at Tiananmen Gate in Beijing on January 23, 2020. Large-scale Lunar New Year events in Beijing have been cancelled as part of national efforts to control the spread of a new SARS-like virus, city authorities announced on January 23. (Photo by Nicolas Asfouri/AFP Photo)

Indigenous women participate in the Hanal Pixan (Food of the Souls), in the community of Tres Reyes, Quintana Roo state, Mexico, 31 October 2022. With the Hanal Pixan, the celebration of the Day of the Dead begins Monday to remember people's loved ones in the State of Quintana. (Photo by Alonso Cupul/EPA/EFE)

A light pillar is a visual phenomenon created by the reflection of light from ice crystals with near horizontal parallel planar surfaces. The light can come from the Sun (usually at or low to the horizon) in which case the phenomenon is called a sun pillar or solar pillar. It can also come from the Moon or from terrestrial sources such as streetlights.

China's Yanni Wu looks on as she stands with officials following a false start during the women's 100m hurdles final at Olympic Sports Centre Stadium in Hangzhou, China on October 1, 2023. (Photo by Dylan Martinez/Reuters)

British fashion model Twiggy plays around on the bumper cars at the Bertram Mills Circus in London, England on January 10, 1967. (Photo by AP Photo)

LCR Honda IDEMITSU's Japanese rider Takaaki Nakagami crashes in the second MotoGP free practice session of the Portuguese Grand Prix at the Algarve International Circuit in Portimao, on April 16, 2021. (Photo by Patricia de Melo Moreira/AFP Photo)

Fireplace for children, Trondheim, Norway, by Haugen/Zohar. The children of Trondheim come to sit around the fire and tell stories in this whimsical cone hut, made with materials recycled from a construction site. (Photo by Jason Havneraas/The Guardian)

An eight-year-old St Bernard with the longest canine tongue in the world, measuring 18.58cm (7.31in) in length, as recorded by the Guinness World Records: Amazing Animals, in South Dakota, USA. (Photo by Kevin Scott Ramos/GWR/PA Wire)