Palm Desert Sunrise
This image of a Southern California sunrise is an example of Rayleigh Scattering , which I described in a previous post of an Alberta, Canada mountain sunrise (for those interested, see below).
The brightly coloured skies we may see at sunrises and sunsets are due to a phenomenon called Rayleigh Scattering. It is named after the British physicist Lord Rayleigh who discovered it.
During sunsets and sunrises, when the sun is closer to the horizon, sunlight has to travel through a longer distance and more of the dense environment to reach an observer’s eye. Due to Rayleigh Scattering, most of the light of shorter wavelengths – the blue, violet, and green – are scattered away multiple times, leaving only lights of longer wavelength – the red, orange, and yellow – to pass straight through to the observer.
This is why a rising and setting sun tends to generate spectacular hues of red, orange, and yellow.
The quality of the air that sunlight has to pass through also has an effect on the color of sunrises and sunsets. Dust particles and pollutants tend to tone down the colors in the sky as well as impede light from reaching the observer on the ground. Because of this, the sky takes on dull hues of red and yellow when the air is full of dust and pollutants. This is why sunrises and sunsets in rural areas, over the ocean, and deserts are much more vibrant and colorful than over cities and urban areas.
Palm Desert Sunrise
This image of a Southern California sunrise is an example of Rayleigh Scattering , which I described in a previous post of an Alberta, Canada mountain sunrise (for those interested, see below).
The brightly coloured skies we may see at sunrises and sunsets are due to a phenomenon called Rayleigh Scattering. It is named after the British physicist Lord Rayleigh who discovered it.
During sunsets and sunrises, when the sun is closer to the horizon, sunlight has to travel through a longer distance and more of the dense environment to reach an observer’s eye. Due to Rayleigh Scattering, most of the light of shorter wavelengths – the blue, violet, and green – are scattered away multiple times, leaving only lights of longer wavelength – the red, orange, and yellow – to pass straight through to the observer.
This is why a rising and setting sun tends to generate spectacular hues of red, orange, and yellow.
The quality of the air that sunlight has to pass through also has an effect on the color of sunrises and sunsets. Dust particles and pollutants tend to tone down the colors in the sky as well as impede light from reaching the observer on the ground. Because of this, the sky takes on dull hues of red and yellow when the air is full of dust and pollutants. This is why sunrises and sunsets in rural areas, over the ocean, and deserts are much more vibrant and colorful than over cities and urban areas.