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The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. ... though its light is actually white. ... or magenta, and in rare occasions even green or blue.
Green flash occurs because the atmosphere causes the light from the Sun to separate, or refract, into different frequencies. Green flashes are enhanced by mirages, which increase refraction. A green flash is more likely to be seen in stable, clear air, when more of the light from the setting sun reaches the observer without being scattered.
Green rim and green flashes of the setting Sun. Often the green rim of the setting Sun will change to a green flash and then back again to a green rim during the same sunset. The image to the right might accurately illustrate what members of Byrd's party from the Little America base might have seen.
Green flashes are actually a group of phenomena stemming from different causes, and some are more common than others. [36] Green flashes can be observed from any altitude (even from an aircraft). They are usually seen at an unobstructed horizon , such as over the ocean, but are possible over cloud tops and mountain tops as well.
If the extraterrestrial solar radiation is 1,367 watts per square meter (the value when the Earth–Sun distance is 1 astronomical unit), then the direct sunlight at Earth's surface when the Sun is at the zenith is about 1,050 W/m 2, but the total amount (direct and indirect from the atmosphere) hitting the ground is around 1,120 W/m 2. [6]
The weather forecast on the sun: rainy with a chance of space fireballs. Astronomers have discovered a phenomenon that causes the sun to form enormous objects similar to meteors or "shooting stars ...
Diagram showing displacement of the Sun's image at sunrise and sunset Comparison of inferior and superior mirages due to differing air refractive indices, n. Atmospheric refraction is the deviation of light or other electromagnetic wave from a straight line as it passes through the atmosphere due to the variation in air density as a function of height. [1]
Thus, the Sun occupies 0.00001% (1 part in 10 7) of the volume of a sphere with a radius the size of Earth's orbit, whereas Earth's volume is roughly 1 millionth (10 −6) that of the Sun. Jupiter, the largest planet, is 5.2 AU from the Sun and has a radius of 71,000 km (0.00047 AU; 44,000 mi), whereas the most distant planet, Neptune, is 30 AU ...