What is the phenominom that occurs, when the sun sets/rises and there is a momentary green flash of light?

Answer 1

green flashes several links to it through here
also see Astonomy picture of the day
search: APOD
a different picture every day with links and explanations
Great!

Answer 2

It is called the "green flash". You might want to google it. It is rare, but it has been photographed. The eggheads say that it deals with atmospheric refraction, but I have yet to find an article to really explain why it happens .
From APOD:
Explanation: Many think it is just a myth. Others think it is true but its cause isn't known. Adventurers pride themselves on having seen it. It's a green flash from the Sun. The truth is the green flash does exist and its cause is well understood. Just as the setting Sun disappears completely from view, a last glimmer appears startlingly green. The effect is typically visible only from locations with a low, distant horizon, and lasts just a few seconds. A green flash is also visible for a rising Sun, but takes better timing to spot. A dramatic green flash was caught in the above photograph in 1992 from Finland. The Sun itself does not turn partly green, the effect is caused by layers of the Earth's atmosphere acting like a prism.

Answer 3

The phenomena results from the refraction of the sun's rays at the horizon by the atmosphere. As the sun sinks, layers of the atmosphere, like a prism, break its light into different colors. Red light sets with the sun, blue light is dispersed or scattered, and yellow light is absorbed. Only the green light shines through for a few brief seconds. The green flash occurs at sunset or sunrise but is more often observed at day's end simply because more people are awake to see it.

Answer 4

If the conditions are right, the refraction of light caused by the earths atmosphere can cause different colors to seperate, as in a prism. This results in the so called green flash that lasts no more than a second or two. There are many different types of green flash and actually not all of them are green. For detailed info, check out the site below.

Answer 5

Green flashes are rare optical phenomena that occur shortly after sunset or before sunrise, when a green spot is visible for a short period of time above the sun, or a green ray shoots up from the sunset point. It is usually observed from a low altitude where there is an unobstructed view of the horizon, such as on the ocean. If you see it, its suppose to bring you good luck.

Answer 6

It's called simply "green flash".

From Wikipedia :

"Green flashes and green rays are rare optical phenomena that occur shortly after sunset or before sunrise, when a green spot is visible for a short period of time above the sun, or a green ray shoots up from the sunset point. It is usually observed from a low altitude where there is an unobstructed view of the horizon, such as on the ocean."

Their article has a lot of info on this. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_flash


Here is someone's green flash webpage: http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/GF/

Answer 7

It's the refraction of light. Same thing that gives you blue in the day and red at sunset.
The green is only brief because there is only a very narrow angle for the necessary refraction.

Answer 8

i think that is when the blue light has the shortest wavelength it penetrates into the earth's atmosphere the first.

therefore that is why the sky is blue during the day and red at the evening.

if you do spectroscopy in chemistry you will learn that green and red makes blue

(not like in art that yellow and blue makes green cause that is art)


so that is why u see green.

u really cant see the red cause it is infra red and u cannot see it with the naked eye

Answer 9

The green flash. I have never seen it but have seen mock suns

Answer 10

Hangover