Sunrises and sunsets are yellow/red in color because...

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Question restatement: Sunrises and sunsets are yellow/red in color because... (multiple choice)

Option 1: 'both' — This would imply that two separate factors are simultaneously responsible. Since one of the other options contains an incorrect claim about scattering, this choice cannot be supported as true if it relies on both factors being correct. In this context, there isn’t a second independent mechanism presented that would validate this as a true combined statement.

Option 2: 'The atmosphere at sunset always scatters lower frequency light waves' — This is not accurate. Rayleigh scattering affects shorter wavelengths (higher frequency) more strongly, not lower frequencies. While the path through the atmosphere lengthens at sunset, causing more blue/green light to scatter out and leaving longer wavelengths, the claim about always scattering lower frequency light is inconsistent with the physics of atmospheric scattering.

Option 3: 'The intensity of the higher frequency colors is diminished by having been scattered traveling through more of the atmosphere' — This aligns with the core idea of Rayleigh scattering: shorter wavelengths (higher frequency) are scattered more readily as light traverses a longer atmospheric path, removing them from the direct beam and leaving the longer wavelengths (yellow to red) visible at sunrise and sunset. The phrase 'higher frequency colors' being diminished due to longer travel through atmosphere matches the observed color shift.

Option 4: 'neither' — This would be chosen if none of the statements explained the phenomenon, but Option 3 provides a correct explanation consistent with established scattering physics, so selecting 'neither' would be inaccurate.

In summary, the reasoning for each option hinges on understanding how atmospheric scattering depends on wavelength: shorter wavelengths scatter more and are removed from the direct line of sight when the sun is near the horizon, causing the sky to appear redder/yellower at sunrise and sunset. The statement in Option 3 captures this mechanism, whereas Option 2 misstates which wavelengths scatter more, Option 1 relies on an unsupported combination, and Option 4 denies a correct explanation assignment.

Sunrises and sunsets are yellow/red in color because... 单项选择题

类似问题

Which of the following explains why the sky is blue?

The sky is blue because

What process causes the sky (lower tropopause) to appear blue in colour?

The sky is blue because

Why is the sky blue?

What was the world's first widely adopted biodiversity policy?

The aim of the Paris Agreement is to ensure that the earth’s preindustrial temperature is not exceeded by more than º Celsius.

更多留学生实用工具

智能学习助手

风格化写作助手

论文查重助手

文献引用助手

课堂转译助手

课堂笔记助手

Quiz搜索助手

学校历年真题

智能刷题助手

智能匹配练习

希望你的学习变得更简单