There's not a lot of funding dedicated to research on rainbows, but a passion for photography and the spiritual draw of the atmospheric phenomenon keeps University of Hawai‘i Professor Steven Businger on the chase.
The certified consulting meteorologist and ARCS Scholar advisor shared his knowledge—from ancient Greek and Hawaiian observations to modern understanding of the physics—in an illustrated Honolulu Pau Hana talk. It takes sun and rain, sure, but there are additional factors that make Hawai‘i arguably the rainbow capital of the world. Dr. Businger's determination to photograph a full-circle rainbow led him to co-create the RainbowChase phone app, which can direct you conditions conducive to rainbow watching.
- View the video of his presentation on the ARCS Honolulu YouTube channel.
- Download his slides
- Read his article in the Bulletin of the American Meterological Society
- Download the RainbowChase app from the AppleStore or GooglePlay
- Listen to his interview on National Public Radio's Science Friday
Article and links at https://honolulu.arcsfoundation.org/news/chasing-rainbows-honolulu-professor
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