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NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day for Oct. 4, 2026, features a photograph of at least five supernumerary rainbows over the Jersey Shore after the remnants of Hurricane Florence passed in 2018. NASA explains that these extra bands form when sunlight waves interfere after passing through similarly sized water droplets.
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day on Oct. 4, 2026, features a photograph of at least five supernumerary rainbows appearing over the Jersey Shore after the remnants of Hurricane Florence passed in 2018. The image captures a rare-looking pattern of closely spaced colored bands, which NASA says forms through the wave interference of sunlight in similarly sized raindrops.
The image was credited to photographer John Entwistle. NASA’s accompanying explanation says the scene occurred after Florence’s remnants passed over the Jersey Shore, New Jersey, in 2018. The Sun appeared in one direction while the rainbows formed in the opposite part of the sky. Entwistle and his daughter watched the colors change for about half an hour, and the featured single photograph records at least five of the additional bands.
NASA describes supernumerary rainbows as forming when falling droplets are nearly the same size, typically less than a millimeter across. Sunlight interacts within the droplets and produces interference, creating extra, closely spaced color bands alongside a primary rainbow. The agency compares the wave effect to overlapping ripples on a pond after a stone is thrown in. The APOD entry was prepared by authors and editors Robert Nemiroff, Jerry Bonnell, Cecilia Chirenti and Keighley Rockcliffe.
The photograph is a past observation, not a new event in the sky: NASA’s publication date is 2026, but the reported rainbow display took place in 2018. The APOD service presents a different astronomy image or photograph each day, accompanied by an explanation written by a professional astronomer, according to NASA.
How Droplets Create Extra Bands
The image gives readers a visible example of a phenomenon that connects an everyday weather sight with the wave behavior of light. An ordinary rainbow is produced by sunlight interacting with water droplets, but the additional bands described here require the effects of light waves interfering with one another. NASA says supernumerary rainbows can be explained only through waves.
The display is also a reminder that the conditions inside a rain shower can shape what appears in the sky. When droplets are sufficiently similar in size, the interference pattern can become visible; when their sizes vary more, the extra bands may not stand out. The photograph does not establish how common such displays are, but it offers a documented example of the conditions NASA associates with them.
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A 2018 Shoreline Rainbow Display
NASA’s entry places the observation after the remnants of Hurricane Florence passed over the Jersey Shore in 2018. It says sunlight was visible in one direction and the rainbow display appeared opposite it. The explanation does not give a more exact date or location along the shore, nor does it describe the local weather measurements at the time.
Supernumerary bands are not separate rainbows produced by a different storm system. In NASA’s account, they arise from the interaction of light with water droplets that are nearly uniform in size. The agency notes that the existence of supernumerary rainbows was recognized in the early 1800s and was regarded as early evidence for light’s wave nature. The current APOD uses the New Jersey photograph to illustrate that optical effect.
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Details Beyond the Photograph
The APOD explanation does not identify the exact day in 2018, the precise spot where Entwistle took the photograph, or the specific droplet-size measurements. It describes the observed bands as vibrant and says at least five were captured, but provides no measurement of their spacing or a technical account of how the image was processed. NASA’s caption also does not state whether the photograph has been independently analyzed.
The source describes the display as lasting over the next half hour, with the colors fading in and out, but does not specify how long the five visible bands persisted in the captured moment. The entry is an image feature and optical explanation, not a new field report or forecast. No new rainbow event, weather warning or follow-up observation is announced.
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The Daily APOD Continues
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day is scheduled to publish another image on Oct. 5, 2026; the Oct. 4 entry lists its next picture as “open space.” The agency has not announced further reporting or new analysis of Entwistle’s 2018 photograph. Readers can refer to the APOD page for the image credit and NASA’s explanation of the rainbow effect.
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Key Questions
When were the New Jersey rainbows photographed?
NASA says the photograph was taken in 2018, after the remnants of Hurricane Florence passed over the Jersey Shore. The APOD feature itself was published on Oct. 4, 2026.
What are supernumerary rainbows?
They are extra, closely spaced rainbow bands associated with light interference in water droplets that are nearly the same size. NASA says the droplets are typically less than a millimeter across.
How many bands appear in the photograph?
NASA’s explanation says at least five supernumerary rainbows were captured in the featured single shot.
Who took the photograph?
The APOD entry credits John Entwistle as the photographer.
Does the APOD report a new storm or rainbow event?
No. It is a 2026 publication of a photograph from 2018, and NASA’s entry does not report a current weather event or issue a forecast.
Source: primary
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