Why do rainbows happen? How to make your own...

Pot of gold in Gloucester. Credit: Karamjan

Rainbows happen when there is rain in the sky at the same time as sunshine. When it rains, the air is filled with raindrops. The raindrops act like a prism, and sunlight shining through the raindrops at the correct angle scatters the light into the seven different colours of the spectrum - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

Here is a selection of your pictures:

Vibrant display over Leamington Spa. Credit: David Atkinson
Snapped in Birmingham. Credit: Emma Stokes
Rainbow over the Belfry. Credit: Andy Babbington
Pot of gold in Sutton Coldfield. Credit: Graham "Double" Rainbow!
Almost a double rainbow. Credit: Julie Carr
Rainbow over Warley Woods. Credit: Tanya Arongo
Taken in Worcester. Credit: Virg Mercado

There are lots of ways to create your own rainbow.

The simplest is by filling a glass with water and placing it on a window sill.

Put a piece of white paper on the floor in the path of the sunlight shining through the window and the water-filled glass.

Spray the window with hot water droplets - using a plant spray or something similar.

Adjust the glass and paper until you can see a rainbow!