[Part 5 of 5] In the last of the Lake Mendota sunset series, the sunset itself likely did not begin until about here, even though just a small portion of the orb still was visible. The far water edge was much closer to the invisible true horizon than the hilltop. Through extrapolation, that puts the “bottom” of the sun on the horizon. For practical purposes of course, “sunset” was seconds away. Visual distortions, such as seen here at the top and right side of the sun, are common at sunset, as invisible inversions and thermal layers in the atmosphere (representing changing air densities) acting as lenses to differentially redirect the light passing through them. Without the hills, we may have even seen a “Balloon Sun” thanks to such lensing. [Back to Part 1]
Madison WI (5 Aug 26) Looking WNW
43.0932, -89.3732