Why isn't the sky blue from above?

Answer 1

The sky is blue because the "white" light from the sun is diffused by our atmosphere. The atmosphere is between us and the sun. From space, we are between the atmosphere and the sun so consequently we cannot see the diffusing of color, just the earth lit by the sun below us.

Answer 2

I am going to answer you're question, just not in the way you have asked it.

The Sun emits many forms of radiation in all directions at all times. What separates a certain type of radiation from another is the wavelength. Some examples of radiation emitted from the Sun include the following: x-ray, gamma, ultraviolet, infrared, microwave, and radio wave. Somewhere in the middle of the spectrum of emitted radiation is visible light. This is the radiation that humans can actually see with the unaided eye coming off of the sun, which makes it so bright to us.

Visible light coming from the Sun is emitted as "white" light, meaning all of the colors of the spectrum are "mixed" together. As you may know, the spectrum has two ends to it: a blue and a red end. Blue is the color which has the shortest wavelength; red has the longest. When the "white" light hits the curvature of the Earth's atmosphere, the atmosphere acts as a prism and separates all of the colors. Being so that blue light has the shortest wavelength, it also means it is the weakest. Because of this, the blue light is scattered all throughout our atmosphere, whereas the rest of the colors pass through without being scattered (or not as nearly as much). We then observe this through seeing a blue sky.

For the same reason, this is why the sky is usually reddish (sometimes with some orange or yellow mixed in) in color when the Sun is on the horizon; visible light has to travel the furthest to get to you when the Sun is at a right-angle in regards to the horizon. Think about it, if the Sun is on YOUR horizon (as is the case at dawn and dusk), that means it is high-afternoon/daytime SOMEWHERE in the world, and THEIR sky has already "robbed" you of YOUR blue visible light. Then the only colors left for you by the time the visible light reaches YOUR sky is the longer wavelengths of yellow, orange, and red (red is the longest). These colors were able to pass through the atmosphere relatively untouched (unlike blue), so they were all that was leftover after the shorter, more “weak” end of the spectrum was eliminated.

And lastly, the ocean is blue because it is a reflection from the sky, NOT the other way around like most people think. Water is clear, not blue.

Answer 3

Guys, the sky is NOT a reflection of water - the reverse is true. What! did you think nobody in the middle of continents ever see a blue sky.

The sky is blue due to scattering of blue light by the atmosphere, and as the previous respondant pointed out, it is still blue when viewed from space, if you look to the horizon and not straight down.

having said that the sky is not a reflection of water, I can qualify that slightly. We have a number of beautiful glacial lakes here in New Zealand. Two in particular are an amazing Turquoise color, Pukaki and Tekapo. This is due to glacial till - fine sediment which the glaciers have rubbed off the rock over which they ran. This till has a blue tinge and imparts it to the water.

I have seen on a day of low cloud, the blue of these lakes reflected off the bottom of the clouds.

But this is a different thing entirely from the blue of the clear sky.

Answer 4

When the earth is viewed from space you are looking directly down through the atmosphere at clouds, water, and land. However, If you look at pictures of the Earth from space that are tilted at an angle so that you can see the atmosphere than the sky definitely is blue. You have to be able to see the earth at the right perspective to still see that it is a blue sky.

Answer 5

Well it kinda is...It's the result of the sun refracting through the atmosphere...(not the "reflection of the ocean", since water is not in fact blue, but colorless...not that this was what you were thinking, it just seems to be a common silly misunderstanding)

Answer 6

the sky only looks blue to us because it is reflecting the color of the water. Since water covers so much of the earth's surface, it looks blue everywhere.

Answer 7

Because what we see as blue is a reflection of the suns light. The light reflects towards us. The light reflects off of the atmosphere.

Answer 8

Because it is not blue in Heaven above.

Answer 9

there is actual a huge volume of water contained in the air (humidity). In small parts, you could not see the blue color. In great parts, you could locate it. you could not see the blue in a room or in a tumbler of water; yet, you could locate it contained in the sky and contained in the sea. i desire this facilitates.

Answer 10

Because from above, dear Jen, you are looking at the ground! Hence the green or brownish tinting...