Atmospheric optical effects can teach much about physics and especially optics. Coronae--coloured rings around the sun or moon--are large-scale consequences of diffraction, which is often thought of as only a small effect confined to the laboratory. We describe coronae, how they are formed and experiments that can be conducted on ones in the sky.…

Infrared thermal imaging is a valuable tool in physics education at the university level. It can help to visualize and thereby enhance understanding of physical phenomena from mechanics, thermal physics, electromagnetism, optics and radiation physics, qualitatively as well as quantitatively. We report on its use as lecture demonstrations, student…