2006-12-22 21:47:51 · 15 answers · asked by shan s 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
The blue color of the sky is caused by the scattering of sunlight off the molecules of the atmosphere. This scattering, called Rayleigh scattering, is more effective at short wavelengths (the blue end of the visible spectrum). Therefore the light scattered down to the earth at a large angle with respect to the direction of the sun's light is predominantly in the blue end of the spectrum.
Note that the blue of the sky is more saturated when you look further from the sun. The almost white scattering near the sun can be attributed to Mie scattering, which is not very wavelength dependent.
2006-12-22 21:50:27 · answer #1 · answered by blapath 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I don't think so... maybe the other people are pertaining to the question "why is the ocean blue" and the simple explanation to it because the sky reflects on it... Not sure about the question on why is the sky blue
2006-12-23 05:58:07 · answer #2 · answered by RIOT! 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
3
2006-12-23 05:49:21 · answer #3 · answered by jeff b 1 · 0⤊ 2⤋
The sun gives off lots of different colors of light. The wavelength of light determines what happens to it when it strikes our atmosphere. Blue light is scattered much more easily by atmospheric gasses than other colors of light (because of its wavelength).
The sun's light contains lots of different wavelengths of light which, when seen together, look yellow. That just happens to be how they look. That is also why the sun appears to be yellow when you look at it. When you see the sun in the sky, the light is, of course, not just hitting you, but is hitting your half of the earth's atmosphere. When it hits the atmosphere, blue light immediately begins to scatter, and some of it scatters towards you. That is why you see blue light everywhere in the sky on a sunny day.
Red light scatters too, but not nearly as much as blue light. So when the sun is setting, and light must travel through a lot more atmosphere to reach you than when the sun is in the middle of the sky, the blue light all scatters away before it reaches you. The red light does not scatter completely away, but spreads to create the beautiful red sunsets that we are used to seeing.
That is why the sky is blue and sunsets are red. It is not because of pollution. It is not a special property of nitrogen or of oxygen.
2006-12-23 10:23:06 · answer #4 · answered by Biznachos 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why is the sky blue why is the grass green why are clouds white? All of life's true mysteries here is the answer the gods Zeus in particular with his mighty will turned the sky blue.then god shima with her battleaxe fertilized the earth hence now it is green.
2006-12-23 06:10:07 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sea is blue because it's reflecting the sky!!!
2006-12-23 06:09:49 · answer #6 · answered by Cougie 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The sun's rays are reflecting off the ocean, then, refracting through the atmosphere. Earth's surface area is over 70% blue water giving the sky a matching hue...
2006-12-23 05:52:39 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
The electromegnatic rays are spread from the sun. In this rays,which can we see,has seven colours.blue colour covers the most of area.so,we can see the sky blue.
2006-12-23 06:00:32 · answer #8 · answered by Patel Milan 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Who said it is?? It is not blue. It is the illusion of your eyes. Or maybe that is how your eyes see the sky.
I SEE IT ORANGE ALL THE TIME!
2006-12-23 11:03:33 · answer #9 · answered by AD 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's cause of the atmosphere "blocking" almost everything but the blue color. Remember the colors of the rainbow? ROYGBIV yeah.. that.
2006-12-23 05:56:01 · answer #10 · answered by Garh G 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋