February 28, 2011
The photo above showing moonlight glittering off the ocean was taken from a pier in Santa Monica, California. Glitter is that bright patch of light reflected on a surface such as a body of water. Close-up time exposures show it to be myriad ropey reflections, each forming a closed loop too fast for the eye to follow. Click here to see a clip of glitter path from sunlight. High-speed movies reveal the source of these loops. A single point of glitter instantly appears and splits in two. The two points of light scurry around then come back together and vanish. Sometimes one member of a pair will find part of another pair and combine with it. It all happens in a fraction of a second. Always make sure to protect your eyes, even when looking at reflected sunlight.