North to Alaska

Merlin’s Magic

According to tradition Fata Morgana (Morgan le Fay), the sister of King Arthur was an enchantress trained by Merlin in the art of changing shapes. She supposedly lived in a castle beneath the sea but sometimes she would make this castle appear in the air. Her name is now attached to a unique type of mirage that can only exist where there are alternating layers of hot and cold air near the surface of land or water. The mirage itself is a composite of several combined images one of which is inverted beneath the other(s). The fata morgana is fairly common in Alaska, especially here on hillside as is seen in this picture of Mt. Redoubt Volcano.