Atmospheric optics

Common card · No. 380077

Atmospheric optics is "the study of the optical characteristics of the atmosphere or products of atmospheric processes .... [including] temporal and spatial resolutions beyond those discernible with the naked eye". Meteorological optics is "that part of atmospheric optics concerned with the study of patterns observable with the naked eye". Nevertheless, the two terms are sometimes used interchangeably. Meteorological optical phenomena, as described in this article, are concerned with how the optical properties of Earth's atmosphere cause a wide range of optical phenomena and visual perception phenomena. Examples of meteorological phenomena include: The blue color of the sky. This is from Rayleigh scattering, which sends more higher frequency/shorter wavelength (blue) sunlight into the eye of an observer than other frequencies/wavelength. The reddish color of the Sun when it is observed through a thick atmosphere, as during a sunrise or sunset. This is because long-wavelength (red) light...

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