The reason the sky is blue is due to a process called diffuse sky radiation. Light is a type of radiation, and has wave-like properties. The light from the sun (white light) is a mixture of colours, and each has a slightly different wavelength. The colour red has a very long wavelength and blue the shortest (with other colours falling in-between). Earth’s atmosphere contains many molecules. When the light from the sun hits these molecules, they cause the white light to be scattered through a process known as Rayleigh scattering. The short wavelengths – that is the blue colours end up more scattered than the red and yellows, and this is why the sky appears blue. So the sky is blue because of the molecules in the atmosphere and the effect they have on the light from the sun!
The reason the sky is blue is due to a process called diffuse sky radiation. Light is a type of radiation, and has wave-like properties. The light from the sun (white light) is a mixture of colours, and each has a slightly different wavelength. The colour red has a very long wavelength and blue the shortest (with other colours falling in-between). Earth’s atmosphere contains many molecules. When the light from the sun hits these molecules, they cause the white light to be scattered through a process known as Rayleigh scattering. The short wavelengths – that is the blue colours end up more scattered than the red and yellows, and this is why the sky appears blue. So the sky is blue because of the molecules in the atmosphere and the effect they have on the light from the sun!
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