VOLATILITY SURFACE

Reading the surface
Height = implied volatility. Valley = at-the-money. The wings rise for downside puts (crash insurance) — that's the smile. Watch the near expiry (front row) spike above the far expiry (back row): that inversion is fear pricing in faster than time can dilute it. Options: LIVE CHAIN = real quoted IV from that ticker's actual options market. MODELED = no chain available, shown as a stylized approximation instead.