Extremely rare moonbow appears in the sky Iceland (picture)

A rare lunar rainbow appeared in the night sky over Iceland and was captured by a keen photographer who stopped his car after spotting the spectacular sight during bad weather.

Víðir Björnsson took the beautiful photo of the moonbow in the West Iceland town of Stykkishólmur, Iceland Monitor reports.

See also: Amazing lunar rainbow over Victoria Falls

While Iceland is no stranger to natural phenomena, such as the Northern Lights, moonbows are an extremely rare sight.

Speaking to the BBC, Björnsson, who posted the photo on Instagram, said: "I was driving in heavy rain and so much wind and I just stopped the car because I could not believe what I was seeing.

See also: Ever seen a 'fire rainbow cloud'?

"First I thought I was just seeing some reflection from the window of my car, but then me and my friend who was driving decided to stop and try to get a picture of it."

He added that there was a second moonbow visible but it is difficult to see in the photo.

Moonbows, also known as white rainbows, are produced by light reflecting on the surface of the moon, rather than direct sunlight, refracting off moisture in the atmosphere. They are always in the opposite side of the sky to the moon and often appear white as it is difficult for the human eye to distinguish the colours of the moonbow.

Last year, a moon ring was spotted in the Scottish Highlands.

The halo, which is created by suspended ice crystals in the air, was seen over Tyndrum and captured on camera. In folklore, moon rings are said to warn of approaching storms.

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