The view of Corsica from the mainland just before sunrise, particularly from Nice, always raises the same questions: is it really a genuine phenomenon or simply a mirage?
Why is it not visible every day, and what are the most favorable conditions to see it?
What exactly is the role of the bending of light rays in the atmosphere and the Earth’s rounded shape that tends to hide the island?
All these questions are legitimate, and it is often not easy to find clear answers, especially since some relate to fundamental questions about the nature of vision and the perception of reality through images.
This Friday, François MIGNARD, Research Director at CNRS and a member of the Lagrange Laboratory at the Côte d’Azur Observatory, will give a lecture at the Maison de l’Environnement in Nice, during which he will address all your questions, with explanations on basic geometry and the straight-line propagation of light.
This lecture will be illustrated with photographs of the Isle of Beauty taken at various altitudes and in different circumstances, as well as numerous explanatory diagrams.
A panoramic image will be accompanied by an identification of all the peaks visible from Nice.
