What is the cause of that hazy mirage look that you see in deserts?

Answer 1

As heat rises from the sand, it causes light to bend and distort. Ususally, it only causes the desert to look like it is swaying back and forth, but if something colorful is in the distance, such as blue water or buildings, it may appear to be nearer than it really is. It's all because the light is warped by the heat.

Answer 2

Mirage is an optical illusion which is created due to total internal reflection of light.
1) In hot desert the sand become hot due to which the surrounding atmosphere became rarer medium.
2)The atmosphere above is denser.
3)Suppose light is reflected from a tree so light will travel away from the normal.
4)At a stage the angle of incidence for light will became more from its critical angle so light will be totally reflected in the same medium.
5)Since we see light in a straight line a real and inverted image of tree would be found.
6)It is not steady so a person feels that their is some water in that area.

Answer 3

When light travels though mediums of different density the light slows and can split into different wavelengths. Shorter wavelengths can travel faster than longer wavelengths through th medium.This can be seen in a glass prism. Light travels through the air and passes through the prism. The prism is a different density than air so the light ca split into its different wavelengths. This can also be seen as hot mirages on roadways on hot days. Air heated by the road has a different density, as light passes through the hot (less dense) air it bends slightly causing a shimmering effect. A simple way of explaining it is, refraction is the bending of light.