Green Flash Over the Sun version 2. © 2010 Larry Shoenberger.

February 2011 —You might have heard about the elusive “green flash” that sometimes appears at sunset, just at the instant when the last touch of the sun disappears on the horizon. Some people don’t believe that green flashes exist. In his DVD, California Coastal Sunset Light Shows, photographer Larry Shoenberger has proven otherwise. The show displays dozens of different sunset light phenomena, including many green flashes.

“It’s not like hunting snipes,” jokes Shoenberger, who took all his green flash, blue flash, and other sunset photos right here on the Coastside. On the DVD’s voiceover, Shoenberger describes how conditions in the earth’s atmosphere cause green flashes to occur. Lucky for us, these conditions — which include a strong horizon line and specific ways in which the evening’s atmospheric layers bend the sun’s rays — abound over the Pacific in the region surrounding Half Moon Bay. Other awesome effects the Coastside sun produces include sundogs, light pillars, Buddha’s rays and illuminated cloud formations. The sunset photos on the DVD are further enhanced by the modern jazz compositions of Grammy Award nominee Terry Disley.

Green Flash Over the Sun version 1. © 2010 Larry Shoenberger.

California Coastal Sunset Light Shows is the culmination of six years of Shoenberger’s photographic work. The idea for a series of green flash photos was inspired by an argument during a car trip back east; one of Shoenberger’s companions claimed that green flashes did not exist. With an educational background in physics that includes a strong interest in astronomy, Shoenberger knew differently. He set out to photograph green flashes in Half Moon Bay. Starting with a pocket point-and-shoot digital camera, he got his first blurry shot of a green flash one evening at Francis Beach. Since then, he’s worked his way up to more sophisticated equipment and gotten practice keeping his camera steady. Meeting up with Terry Disley one night at the Miramar Beach Restaurant, Shoenberger struck a deal to license some of Disley’s music, and the DVD started coming together.

The result is an educational yet peaceful 38-minute program that teaches viewers what creates the magnificent light shows, then lets them sit back and enjoy the beauty of the sunsets and listen to the accompanying music.

Containing far more interesting information than the average postcard, this DVD makes a great souvenir or gift. Teachers working on earth sciences, astronomy or meteorology with their classes might find California Coastal Sunset Light Shows to be a fun teaching tool. Shoenberger’s down-to-earth, accessible narrative style makes the science behind showy sunsets comprehensible to a wide audience. And if you’re looking for unique entertainment for Valentine’s Day, try Chapter 4 of the DVD. With no narration, nor any need to bundle up against the February cold, the romance of sunsets set to beautiful music creates just the right ambiance for a romantic evening.

California Coastal Sunset Light Shows is available for sale at Kepler’s Books in Menlo Park and at the following shops around the Coastside:

Green Flash On Horizon. © 2010 Larry Shoenberger.

• Bay Book Company, Strawflower Shopping Center, Half Moon Bay.

• Coastside Books, downtown Half Moon Bay.

• Harbor Books, in the Shoppes Harbor Village, Princeton Harbor.

• The Music Hut, downtown Half Moon Bay.

• Ritz-Carlton Hotel gift shop, Half Moon Bay.

• The Squash Blossom, downtown Half Moon Bay.

The DVD is also sold at selected Terry Disley performances. Individual prints from the DVD will be available for sale via Shoenberger’s website.

Want to learn more about green flashes, sundogs and other scientific aspects of the setting sun? Check out the Teaching Company course entitled “Understanding the Universe: An Introduction to Astronomy” taught by Professor Alex Filippenko of the University of California, Berkeley.