That’s the best explanation of Rayleigh scattering I’ve seen in a while, thank you!
The interesting questions start at the next layer. For example, the same Rayleigh scattering could also lead to a violet or purple sky depending on the composition of sunlight. Or it could lead to an orange sky if the atmosphere was thicker and most of the blue got scattered into space. Or it could be all sorts of other colors due to atmospheric gases or dust. At long timescales, all these factors can change a lot. So if I try to convert the simple explanation into a prediction—“Daddy, was the sky always blue? What color will it be in a billion years?”—my mind goes everywhere at once.
That’s the best explanation of Rayleigh scattering I’ve seen in a while, thank you!
The interesting questions start at the next layer. For example, the same Rayleigh scattering could also lead to a violet or purple sky depending on the composition of sunlight. Or it could lead to an orange sky if the atmosphere was thicker and most of the blue got scattered into space. Or it could be all sorts of other colors due to atmospheric gases or dust. At long timescales, all these factors can change a lot. So if I try to convert the simple explanation into a prediction—“Daddy, was the sky always blue? What color will it be in a billion years?”—my mind goes everywhere at once.