fata morgana

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The Word of the Day for November 4 is: 

fata morgana   \fah-tuh-mor-GAH-nuh\   noun
     : mirage 

Example sentence:
          “After driving for days,” wrote Marisol, “we finally caught sight of 
the Rocky Mountains, rising above the horizon like a fata morgana.”

Did you know?
          “Fata Morgana” is the Italian name for Morgan le Fay (meaning "Morgan 
the Fairy"), a sorceress of medieval legends. This sister of the legendary King 
Arthur is sometimes portrayed as the ruler of the island paradise Avalon and is 
said to have had a number of magical powers, with which she caused a great deal 
of trouble. Among her powers, say some versions of the legend, was the ability 
to change shape, and she has been blamed for causing complex mirages over 
bodies of water, especially in the Strait of Messina. Today we know that such 
optical illusions are really caused by atmospheric conditions, but we still 
sometimes use "fata morgana" as a synonym of "mirage."





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