Looking into the blue sky

On a clear day you look up to the sky and high above and all around is a beautiful shade of light blue which ever way you look. The Sun is a pale yellow so bright that you cannot and should not look at it. As you look towards the horizon the blue gently pales to white. You may be over come with a feeling of wonderment and awe as you gaze around the seemingly limitless pale blue skies.
 

Arne in December - blue skies! - By Ian Kirk - CC BY 2.0

 
Why is the sky blue?

Why is it that the sky is blue and not green, or brown or yellow or any other color, or even one big rainbow? To answer that question you need to know a little bit about the atmosphere surrounding the Earth, a little bit about light and a little bit about something called Rayleigh scattering. To be satisfied with the answer you may to think a little about something else.  Read more