Physically based simulation of Buddha Glory

This paper proposes a novel method of photorealistic simulation of Buddha Glory, a natural phenomenon of great visual beauty which can be observed in the area of famous Buddhism Holy Lands in China. This phenomenon is mainly caused by back-scattering of water droplets in fog or cloud. To simulate the glory, we first calculate the spectral scatter intensity of glory rings using Mie scattering theory. We then present a new shadow model to determine the deformed shape of the head and body of "Buddha" within the glory ring. The affect of atmospheric parameters such as the solar elevation angles, the density and size of water droplet in fog or cloud on the shape and color of Buddha Glory is also calculated. For rendering, we adopt the method of path scattering integral to generate the whole attenuated scene of Buddha Glory. Compared with the photographs of real Buddha Glory displays, our synthetic results are quite satisfactory.