A rainbow during the storm
Kiya Richardson, 16, took this photo in the Tehachapi Valley of a nicely complete rainbow during a break in our recent rain showers on Dec. 30.
Rainbows can only been seen when the sun is mostly behind you — you can’t look toward the sun and see a rainbow. Also, the lower the sun is in the sky, when the time is closer to sunrise and sunset, the taller a rainbow appears to be. When the time is closer to the middle of the day, rainbows appear shorter and closer to the ground.
The angle of their curvature or arc is always the same, though: 42 degrees. You won’t find a rainbow with a narrower or broader arch, you just see more or less of the rainbow’s arc depending upon what time of day it is and how high the sun is in the sky.
The Nuwä (Kawaiisu or Southern Paiute) people of the Tehachapi Mountains have used two different words for rainbow. The older word is uwarü poro-iik, which literally translated means “rain stick.” The word used more in recent times is taza no’orü, and taza means “summer.” The second half of the term may refer to the curvature of the rainbow being like the summer is carrying it on its back, since “noo” is a verb meaning “to carry on one’s back.”
Mark Twain is responsible for a famous, if regrettably pejorative quote about rainbows. Twain was lamenting how science has made rainbows seem less mystical and remarkable, when he said “We have not the reverent feeling for the rainbow that the savage has, because we know how it is made. We have lost as much as we gained by prying into that matter.”
But when you see a beautiful rainbow, fleeting, unpredictable and ephemeral, it remains a magical sight.
NATURAL SIGHTINGS is a regular feature of the Tehachapi News edited by Jon Hammond which showcases photos of the natural beauty that enhances the quality of life in Tehachapi. If you have a good quality image of plants, animals, insects, trees, birds, weather phenomena, etc., taken in the Tehachapi area, you may submit it to the Tehachapi News. Submissions can be dropped by the News office, or send an email to: editorial@tehachapinews.com.