It is a rare meteorological phenomenon. The strange “pillars of light” are exceptional luminescent effects on water droplets in the icy fog. A discovery seems to explain them. This can be useful for biological research.
Scientists from Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU) collaborated with an international scientific team. They studied the aquatic particles that make up fog. When frozen (10℃ to 15℃ below zero), they have a structure similar to that of jelly beans. The liquid is inside an icy shell. They acquire resonant properties and can contribute to the formation of magnetic fields. The largest magnetic impulse is emitted at the moment of freezing of the drop. It is the cause of atmospheric optical phenomena, known as the strange “pillars of light.”

Magnetic effects
Ice fog can be considered a natural metamaterial with features of an optical neural network. Small particles of frozen water can communicate each other through magnetic impulses. It is also used by some representatives of the animal world, such as birds. Based on that, their internal browser works during seasonal migration, the study explains.
A model was created of magnetic effects that arise in a drop of water freezing in fog. They discovered the appearance of the Fano resonance. The phenomenon can help create a number of new systems of practical importance.
The Fano resonance varies depending on how thick the ice shell of a frozen particle is. If a wave is thrown into a body of water and then the same wave is thrown at an angle to the first wave, its collision will produce a new crest. At the same time, due to irregularities in climate and relief, the ridge will be uneven. The same thing happens during the interference of electromagnetic waves.

Controlling behavior
«During the freezing process of a drop, the intensity of the magnetic and electric fields increases at its poles. “This causes unusual optical phenomena.”
Existing theoretical models do not take magnetic effects into account. Scientists propose specifications that will one day make it possible not only to control the light in fog, but also to explain the behavior of various living organisms. The study was published in Scientific Reports.
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