Question

Give some examples of scattering of light that we come across in day-to-day life.

Answer 1

Some examples of scattering of light that we come across in day-to-day life are:

• The blue colour of the sky: Out of the seven components present in sunlight, the blue colour is scattered the most by the particles present in the atmosphere and hence, the sky appears blue.
• The reddish colour of the sun during sunrise and sunset: At sunrise or sunset, the sun is located near the horizon of the Earth. Hence, light has to travel a long distance through the Earth’s atmosphere. At the time of sunrise or sunset, when white sunlight falls on suspended atmospheric particles, blue colour light scatters out in deep space, while red colour light scatters less and reaches the observer on the surface of the Earth. Hence, when this less scattered red light reaches our eyes, the sun and its surroundings appear to be reddish.

• Danger signals in red colour:​ Red colour is scattered least by the atmospheric particles and it can travel long distances as compared to other colours. Thus, it alarms a person of the potential danger from a far distance.