The Sun emits all seven colors, but it can only be perceived as red, orange, yellow, and white; it is never perceived as blue, violet, or indigo from Earth.
You have probably witnessed some truly magnificent sunsets in your lifetime, when the sky illuminates with a beautiful and colorful farewell to the Sun. During that time, the sun, the vibrant yellow star that cannot be directly observed during the day, sets in a stunning display of red or orange.
The Sun as we envision it to appear (Photo Credit: -Lukasz Pawel Szczepanski/Shutterstock)
All in all, there are numerous colors in which we have seen the Sun manifest. For simplicity, let us focus on the seven visible spectrum colors. One interesting fact about the Sun is that it emits all seven of these colors! Hence, we are left with the question… under the right circumstances, can we perceive the Sun in each of the seven colors?
The journey of discovering the answer to this question begins with another inquiry: what is the original color of the Sun? It is peculiar to have observed the Sun in so many different colors at different times, yet not know its true color!
However, as mentioned earlier, the sun emits all seven colors of the rainbow. What we need to determine is whether the sun emits one color more than the others.
Which Color Does the Sun Emit the Most?
If sunlight is passed through a prism, all seven colors emerge on the other side, but they all appear to be produced in equal amounts.
The prism experiment reveals that our Sun emits all seven colors, but it does not indicate which color is predominant. (Photo Credit: -Atlantist Studio/Shutterstock)
To find the answer, we must employ spectroscopy, which is simply a sophisticated term for closely examining the spectrum itself. This is where the twist comes in! It has been observed that one color does appear stronger than the others in sunlight. However, if you guessed red, you are mistaken! If you guessed orange, you are still mistaken! But if you guessed yellow, you are wrong once again! Believe it or not, our Sun emits the color green the most!
How is that possible? And if it is true, why have we never seen a green sun, even though it emits green light the most?
Why Isn’t the Sun Green?
Well, there are multiple reasons why a green-colored Sun cannot be perceived from Earth. The most significant reason is that our atmosphere scatters light with shorter wavelengths. Simply put, the atmosphere filters out the blue part of the spectrum, which has shorter wavelengths. Let us not forget that green itself is an intermediate color between blue and yellow.
A green star is more of a myth than a reality for us, even if it emits a significant amount of green light. (Photo Credit: -Unwind/Shutterstock)
With the blue color removed by the atmosphere, we are left with light that is dominated by the color yellow. That is why the sky appears blue, but the Sun appears yellow.
Moreover, in addition to the Sun primarily emitting green light, it also emits all the other colors of the rainbow. When all these colors come together, we perceive it as white. Therefore, unless there is a problem with our eyesight or we use green-tinted goggles, we would never be able to see the Sun as green!
To summarize, the Sun emits all colors, with a higher concentration of green, resulting in its overall white appearance. Now, the question arises: can we see a white Sun from Earth?
A White Sun?
If we observe the Sun during peak afternoon (which is not recommended), it will appear more white than yellow. This is because the sunlight passes through the thinnest part of the Earth’s atmosphere, where there is less scattering, allowing its original color to be visible.
A bright, white sun seen at the peak of the afternoon (Photo Credit : -Iakov Kalinin/Shutterstock)
Due to the same scattering phenomenon, it is challenging to perceive the Sun as white at other times of the day, even at noon. However, if we ever venture into space and look at the Sun (without direct exposure), we would see it as a large, bright, white sphere!
Now, let’s explore the other colors. What about orange and red? Personally, these are my favorite colors of the Sun. They are aesthetically pleasing and do not harm our eyes. But why do we see the Sun in various shades of these colors?
Remember how we can only observe these colors during sunrise or sunset? Again, this is due to the scattering of light! The shorter wavelengths, including the blue side of the spectrum, get scattered, leaving only the red part of the spectrum. That is why we witness an array of red, orange, and yellow hues during sunrise and sunset!
A Violet, Indigo Or Blue Sun?
We know that the Sun emits all colors, including violet, indigo, and blue. Additionally, we often observe beautiful blue stars in the night sky. So, if the Sun emits these colors, why have we never seen a blue Sun in the sky?
There are many blue stars in our night sky, owing to their high temperature and luminosity. (Photo Credit : -vovan/Shutterstock)
As mentioned earlier, our atmosphere scatters the shorter wavelength colors, including violet, indigo, and blue. However, apart from scattering, these colors have higher energy levels due to their shorter wavelengths. Because our eyes are highly sensitive to blue light, we perceive violet and indigo as blue, in a simplified sense.
If the Sun were emitting more blue light, similar to the blue stars in the night sky, our eyes might have adapted to perceive these colors. However, the Sun does not emit enough blue light, and as it ages, its color will gradually shift towards the red part of the spectrum due to its decreasing temperature.
In essence, we will never see our Sun in these cooler colors!
Conclusion
We have successfully accomplished our mission of discovering all the visible colors of the Sun from Earth, along with the reasons behind them.
Summarizing our Journey: Colors of the Sun
In conclusion, the Sun can be classified into four distinct colors: yellow, orange, red, and white. Any variations in shade within this spectrum can be attributed to various weather conditions. However, it is important to note that the Sun will never exhibit a violet, indigo, or blue hue. Now you understand the reasoning behind this phenomenon!