When sunlight travels through the atmosphere, blue light scatters more than the other colors, leaving a dominant yellow-orange hue to the transmitted light. The scattered light makes the sky blue; the transmitted light makes the sunset reddish orange.
The blue color of the sky is due to Rayleigh scattering. As light moves through the atmosphere, most of the longer wavelengths pass straight through. Little of the red, orange and yellow light is affected by the air.
However, much of the shorter wavelength light is absorbed by the gas molecules. The absorbed blue light is then radiated in different directions. It gets scattered all around the sky. Whichever direction you look, some of this scattered blue light reaches you. Since you see the blue light from everywhere overhead, the sky looks blue.
2006-12-12 15:31:32
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answer #1
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answered by jamaica 5
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The blue color of the sky is due to Rayleigh scattering. As light moves through the atmosphere, most of the longer wavelengths pass straight through. Little of the red, orange and yellow light is affected by the air.
However, much of the shorter wavelength light is absorbed by the gas molecules. The absorbed blue light is then radiated in different directions. It gets scattered all around the sky. Whichever direction you look, some of this scattered blue light reaches you. Since you see the blue light from everywhere overhead, the sky looks blue
2006-12-12 10:40:42
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answer #2
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answered by GatorNation 2
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I wondered this for a long time. The sky appears blue because of the amount of atmosphere the light waves from the sun have to go through. Atmospheric particles bend and refract the light waves to appear blue in color. The reason why the sky turns different colors when the sun is just at the horizon, like sunrise and sunset is because the light has to travel through more of the earths atmosphere which in turn bends and refracts the light even more giving it a reddish/purple apperance.
At high noon, there is a relatively small amount of atmosphere the light from the sun has to travel through compared to at dusk or dawn.
2006-12-12 10:41:40
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answer #3
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answered by j w 2
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The sky is blue due to the scattering of light. Pure light is white, and the atmosphere scatters the blues so the sky appears blue, at sunup and sundown, the longest wavelengths of light reds and oranges get scattered turning the sky red.
2006-12-14 11:02:09
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answer #4
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answered by weatherbuff900 3
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Why is the sky blue: Summary
So, why is the sky blue? It is because blue light from the sun strikes the air molecules and scatters and our eyes perceive it as blue.
Why is the sky blue: Short Summary
Why is the sky blue, you ask? Blue in sunlight collides with air molecules and our eyes see it as blue.
Why is the sky blue: Condensed
Sunlight collides with air, scatters blue wavelengths.
2006-12-12 10:37:29
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answer #5
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answered by ozzymee 2
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Because of Nitrogen. When light passes through Nitrogen, the longer wavelengths of light (reds) get absorbed, and the shorter wavelengths (blues) pass through.
The thin Carbon Dioxide atmosphere of Mars is red, and the thick Sulfuric Acid atmosphere of Venus is yellow.
2006-12-12 13:14:51
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answer #6
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answered by jordannadunn 2
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I'm not entirely sure, but i'd ask jeeves. That guy knows everything.
2006-12-12 10:34:20
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answer #7
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answered by Scissors!! 2
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You'd think a guy with this name would know, don't cha?
2006-12-12 10:36:37
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answer #8
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answered by Anonymous
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