Day 59 | Feb 28 2007 | Orange Sunset

Another sunset, orange one this time.

Ever wondered why sunsets look so colorfully? Well thats because when the sun is directly overhead, the sun light has to pass only through a few kilometers of thick atmosphere. But when the sun is near the horizon (at sunrise or sunset) the light travels a longer distance through the atmosphere. This causes attenuation (loss) of the shorter wavelengths (blue - this is why the sky is blue at other times of the day) leaving only the longer wavelengths like orange and red to reach us. Clouds and other atmospheric effects are also responsible for colors changes. More info here.

Now you know!