What Causes the ‘Blue Hour’ in the Sky?

The sky turns blue during the ‘blue hour’ because of light scattering. When the sun is low on the horizon, like at sunrise or sunset, its light has to travel through more air. The blue part of the light scatters more than other colors, making the sky look blue. It’s like when you shine a flashlight through a glass of water, the blue light spreads out and makes everything look bluer.

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Examples

  1. When you walk outside just after the sun has gone down, the sky turns a soft blue, like it’s holding its breath before night falls.
  2. You're painting with light: reds fade first, then orange, and finally blue takes over, like a sky painting.
  3. Imagine shining a flashlight through a jar of water, the blue light spreads out more than the other colors.

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Categories: Science · light,sky,optics