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You need two things for rainbows: raindrops and direct sunshine. If there is sunshine it means that the sky is not completely filled with rain. If it is not filled with rain, then only part of the sky will show a rainbow.

It is possible (not common, though) for a complete rainbow, it just requires direct sun behind you and the entire sky in front of you to have falling raindrops.

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16y ago
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14y ago

You can see more than half of a rainbow, but it requires very specific conditions. A partial rainbow is just "easier". It boils down to the laws of refraction and reflection. The more particles in the air to refract the light, the more light present to be refracted and the fewer particles to interfere with the light's trip to the eye will result in different sizes of rainbow as well as how full of an arc you are able to see.

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13y ago

No you don't!! Maybe it was just the angle

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Q: Why Is There Usually Only Half A Rainbow?
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Why rainbow is semicircular?

They aren't; their entire shape is a complete circle. From our position during rainbow formation, we can only see half of the rainbow.


What is the shape of an rainbow?

A rainbow forms a circular arc in the sky, with its center located at the antisolar point, which is the point directly opposite to the sun. However, when viewed from the ground, only a portion of the arc is usually visible to the observer due to the horizon.


What is the diameter of a rainbow?

A rainbow is actually a full circle, but when viewed from the ground, only the top half is visible. The diameter of a full rainbow is approximately equal to the distance from the observer to the shadow of their head. The visible part of a rainbow can appear to have a diameter of around 40 to 42 degrees.


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What is an upside down rainbow?

An upside down rainbow, also known as a circumzenithal arc, is an optical phenomenon where a rainbow-like arc appears in the sky with its colors reversed compared to a normal rainbow. It occurs when sunlight is refracted through ice crystals in high-level cirrus clouds at a specific angle. It is relatively rare and usually appears higher in the sky than a traditional rainbow.


Are all rainbows round?

No, rainbows form a full circle, but we only see a semicircle due to the horizon blocking the bottom half. The shape of a rainbow depends on the observer's position relative to the sunlight and water droplets that create it.


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