Science Niblets

Why is the sky blue, and clouds white?

September 27, 2012 | Author: Elmar Bergeler

It's not that everything is lit up by blue light. No, sunlight is actually white. But the sky is blue. Where does this color come from? And think about this: the sky is only blue if there are no clouds, fog, dust, and haze; that is, if there are no particles in the air.

The sunlight gets scattered from air molecules. The molecules scatter blue light stronger than red light

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Where does thunder come from?

February 21, 2012 | Author: Elmar Bergeler

I really like thunderstorms when I am inside and can observe the heavy rain, lightning and thunder from a dry and safe spot. Thunder is produced at the same time as lightning. But have you ever noticed that thunder always comes after lightning? You can actually tell how far away you are from the thunderstorm by measuring the time difference between the lightning and the thunder. Let's have a look at lightning and at the origin of thunder.

Photo of a lightning bolt by David Selby.

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Where do rainbows come from?

January 24, 2012 | Author: Elmar Bergeler

Sometimes when it rains, you can see a rainbow. A rainbow appears only when it is raining and sunny at the same time.

Rainbow

(Photo by Wing-Chi Poon)

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The colors of the sun

August 30, 2011 | Author: Elmar Bergeler

You have probably seen a lot of beautiful sunsets. The red sun on the horizon looks great every time. That's why I like photographing sunsets from time to time, even when I already have a lot of pictures of sunsets.

But why does the sun become orange or reddish at the sunset, whereas during the day it is yellowish?

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Science Niblets

The Science Behind Everyday Topics

Why is the sky blue, and clouds white?

Where does thunder come from?

Where do rainbows come from?

The colors of the sun