• Question: Why is the sky blue?

    Asked by molly1 to Sharon on 15 Mar 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Sharon Sneddon

      Sharon Sneddon answered on 15 Mar 2010:

      Ok, I need to admit that I didn’t really know the answer to this one, but, I looked it up!!! Here is what I learned..

      The blue color of the sky is due to something called Rayleigh scattering. A clear cloudless day-time sky is blue because molecules in the air scatter blue light from the sun more than they scatter red light. When we look towards the sun at sunset, we see red and orange colours because the blue light has been scattered out and away from the line of sight.

      Also, I learned this from the NASA website, out in space, the sky looks dark and black, instead of blue. This is because there is no atmosphere. There is no scattered light to reach your eyes.

      I hope this is correct! maybe you should try and find out if my answer is correct and let me know!

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