The amount of scattering is inversely proportional to the fourth power of the wavelength. This is called Rayleigh' scattering law. Hence the shorter wavelengths are scattered much more than the longer wavelength.
At sunrise and sunset, the rays from the sun have to travel a larger part of the atmosphere than at noon. Therefore most of the blue light is scattered away and only the red light which is least scattered reaches the observer.
2007-06-14 18:03:32
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answer #1
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answered by Alconzy 3
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Sun does not turn red - it looks red to us. It is because of its position in the western horizon. Light rays coming out of the Sun gets refracted due to low angle of incidence in that position and partially absorbed. White light coming out of the Sun is actually a composite mixture of seven rays of Rainbow colours (violet-indigo-blue-green-yell... each having a different wave length. The setting Sun's rays are all absorbed in our atmosphere but the red one, and hence it looks red. During day time, these rays enter atmosphere almost normally and hence there is little refraction, resulting in almost negligible absorption.
It is because of similar reason, the sky looks blue - when sunlight gets reflected in the atmosphere, all other rays but blue is absorbed.
2007-06-14 17:50:57
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answer #2
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answered by CluelessOne 5
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The sun looks red while setting because of the refraction of light from sun. The white light from the sun disperses into Seven Colours and when these rays come to us only the red colour remains. So the sun appears red and as well as its surroundings.
2007-06-14 18:44:02
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answer #3
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answered by Ankit Kumar 3
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It is related to the light spectrum. When sun set, the red spectrum from the sun light is diverted towards the place that suffer evening (each kind of light spectrum will be refracted when at different angle into the atmosphere)
2007-06-14 17:52:28
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answer #4
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answered by Lai Yu Zeng 4
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As the sun has to pass through a greater level of atmosphere (due to the angle), the particles of the atmosphere (dust, water vapors, etc) will scatter more of the red light, so it looks red/orange.
2007-06-14 17:51:18
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answer #5
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answered by Zephyr 2
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the ambience scatters shorter wavelengths of sunshine on a similar time as letting the longer wavelengths bypass by. colorings are merely how we see distinctive wavelengths of sunshine. short wavelengths like blue and violet are scattered via the ambience, that's why the sky is blue. whilst the sunlight is placing (or increasing), you're finding by lots extra air then if it have been bigger. The shorter wavelengths of sunshine are all scattered away leaving the longer crimson, orange, and yellow wavelengths to get to our eyes. The decrease the sunlight gets, the redder it gets because of this considering that crimson is the longest wavelength of sunshine we are able to work out and it gets the least scattered and passes interior the path of the ambience to our eyes.
2016-10-17 08:04:18
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answer #6
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answered by alt 4
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Because of the small amount of the sun's light beams reaching you, and that are getting absorbed by the atmosphere. You are seeing red because of the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere.
2007-06-14 17:49:31
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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The pretty colors you see are the cause of refraction in the atmosphere due to smog and pollution.
2007-06-14 18:11:14
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answer #8
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answered by Raul T 6
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I have seen it reflect red, orange and yellow.
2007-06-14 17:50:38
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answer #9
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answered by Anonymous
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cause the sun is taking a bath before it goes to bed...
2007-06-14 17:49:20
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answer #10
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answered by Anonymous
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