By Sakshi Sah
Published Jan 07, 2025

Hindustan Times
Trending

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Why does the sky appear blue? Discover the science behind it

Have you ever wondered why the sky appears blue? Let's explore the science behind it.

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Sunlight contains all the colours of visible light, from blue to red, reaching Earth's atmosphere.

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Earth’s atmosphere is made up of nitrogen, oxygen, and other particles like dust and water vapour.

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When sunlight enters the atmosphere, it interacts with molecules like nitrogen and oxygen.

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Longer light wavelengths like red pass through easily, while shorter wavelengths like blue scatter more.

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The shorter blue light wavelengths scatter across the sky in all directions, making it appear blue.

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The real colour of the sky is actually bluish-purple because both blue and violet light scatter.

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Our eyes aren’t as sensitive to violet light, so we see the sky as blue instead of purple.

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The way light scatters, combined with how our eyes perceive colour, makes the sky appear blue.

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