Sunlight from the sun passes through our atmosphere and becomes dispersed, with shorter wavelengths like blue being scattered more widely than other colors. Blue light must travel further through the atmosphere than other colors, which explains why the sky appears blue. Rayleigh Scattering Sunlight passing through Earth’s atmosphere is scattered by molecules and particles in…
People often ask why the sky is blue; this answer lies within atmospheric gases and dust particles which scatter sunlight back onto Earth, with blue wavelengths being scattered more often than any other hues. Tamil language provides distinct words for blue (neela – niil), green (pcc paccai) and yellow. Furthermore, light sky blue can also…
As soon as daybreak hits and sunlight hits the atmosphere, light is scattered in all directions – shorter wavelengths of light tend to disperse more rapidly than longer ones and give off a blue hue in the sky. The same process explains why sunrise and sunset skylines appear orange or red respectively. The Sun As…
As sunlight passes through Earth’s atmosphere, molecules of nitrogen and oxygen scatter shorter blue wavelengths more strongly than other colors – an effect known as Rayleigh scattering. Longer wavelengths like yellow, red and orange pass unimpeded through the atmosphere – so why is the sky light blue? Unfortunately, the answer lies somewhere within. The Sun’s…
Light from the Sun The Sun is the engine that drives our solar system and produces enormous amounts of energy that radiates outward from its core in various forms – visible light, heat, x-rays and radio waves being among them. Since 4.5 billion years ago it has been burning with increasing intensity, and will likely…
As sunlight travels through the atmosphere, its light is scattered by air molecules and particles, with shorter wavelengths such as violet and blue being dispersed more widely than longer ones (red). Sky blue color comes from sunlight which has passed through our atmosphere; lunar illumination does not have this same impact, since its beam hasn’t…
Viewed from above sea level, the sky takes on an even darker blue color as more blue wavelengths get scattered through the atmosphere than other hues. Rayleigh scattering, which affects all gases smaller than light wavelengths, plays a part. Light Wavelengths Sunlight contains all of the colors of the rainbow – including blue – which…
Sky blue is a light shade of blue that closely resembles that of an open sky, often used in graphic design to convey trustworthiness and stability. Furthermore, this hue can help improve cognitive skills making it suitable for educational materials as well as mood boards. Mars appears more subdued due to sunlight passing through more…
Why the sky is blue is one of the great perennial questions posed by children aged five or under, never ceasing to fascinate. Sunlight is composed of all wavelengths evenly, but on its path towards Earth’s atmosphere it becomes scattered, with blue wavelengths being dispersed more readily than other ones. Sunlight On a sunny day,…
