Final answer:
The sky appears blue due to the scattering of shorter-wavelength blue light by molecules in the Earth's atmosphere. This phenomenon is known as Rayleigh scattering.
Step-by-step explanation:
The sky appears blue because of a phenomenon called Rayleigh scattering. The Earth's atmosphere scatters short-wavelength light, such as blue and violet, from the Sun in all directions. This scattering is more effective for shorter wavelengths of light, resulting in the blue color that we see.
When sunlight reaches the Earth's atmosphere, it interacts with the molecules in the air. The blue light has a shorter wavelength which is roughly the same size as the air molecules present in the atmosphere. As a result, the blue light is scattered more easily than the longer-wavelength red and orange light. This scattering of blue light makes the sky appear blue to us.
It's important to note that the color of the sky can change throughout the day. During sunrise and sunset, the light from the Sun has to pass through more of the Earth's atmosphere, which scatters away even more of the shorter blue and green wavelengths. This scattering allows the longer red and orange wavelengths to dominate, giving rise to the beautiful colors we associate with sunrise and sunset.
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