Even through heavy cloud cover, brilliant sunsets can fully brighten

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

(A) contains the modification error and can be eliminated.

(B) and (E) remove "being," but this does not fix the problem that "momentary" still seems to describe the sky.

(C) creates a new phrase at the end of the sentence but starts it with "also being." The word "also" does not establish the correct relationship between sunsets that can light up the whole sky yet be easily missed by someone watching. The sentence needs a word that conveys a contrast.

(D) uses "yet" to create a logical contrast between the brightness of the sunset and the possibility that people will still miss it. Also, the new structure provides two parallel actions (sunsets can brighten yet be momentary). This compound predicate makes it clear that "momentary" refers to sunsets, eliminating the initial error. (D) is the correct answer.

TAKEAWAY: When an adjective is placed so that it modifies the wrong noun, the solution may be to create a compound predicate that correctly relates the subject to each of its qualities.

Is this an official GMAT question?

Hi AshishPrasad,

This is not an official question. Here is the official question that this question is based on.

A. Brilliant sunsets can fully brighten the sky being so momentary.....what is momentary. from this it seems sky which is incorrect.
B. sky so momentary ...sky is not momentary
C. also being so momentary what is momentary...not clear. If sky it is incorrect.
D. seems better....Brilliant sunsets is the subject.....Sunsets can brighten the sky yet be (sunset be ) so momentary
E. however momentary ...what is momentary is not clear.

The best option seems to be D.

Can someone explain the grammar in Choice D? Specifically the use of "be so" what it is referring to? What is their grammatical role in the sentence?

Even through heavy cloud cover, brilliant sunsets can fully brighten the sky yet be so momentary that a person could easily miss the display.

Hi WarriorWithin, there is no special meaning of be so; parallelism is at play here.

....brilliant sunsets can
(i) fully brighten the sky ...
yet
(ii) be so momentary...

So,

(i) ....brilliant sunsets can fully brighten the sky ...
(ii) ....brilliant sunsets can be so momentary...

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