6/1/2004: Green flash at sunrise

Undertoad · 06-01-2004, 12:13 PM

This Earth sci pic of the day shows an actual phenomenon - where the Sun's light, traveling through a lot of Earth atmosphere, gets "squashed" and separated until it looks like this. I can't remember ever seeing it this squished...

lookout123 · 06-01-2004, 02:21 PM

that is a beautiful shot. i'm sure there are evil rays of death (technical term) meant to cook our brains found with this phenomenon?

Troubleshooter · 06-01-2004, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by lookout123
that is a beautiful shot. i'm sure there are evil rays of death (technical term) meant to cook our brains found with this phenomenon?

If you follow it up it looks like the red, orange, yellow, green part of the spectrum.

chrisinhouston · 06-01-2004, 04:10 PM

There are some other good photos at http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/GF/pictures.html

xoxoxoBruce · 06-01-2004, 04:54 PM

Didn't Henry Fonda talk about the green flash in, "On Golden Pond"?

mrputter · 06-01-2004, 08:28 PM

<EM>> it looks like the red, orange, yellow, green part of</EM>

Well, that kinda makes sense to me. Given the curvature of the Earth, the sun's rays are hitting the atmosphere at different angles as you move up from the horizon, and since the different bands of the spectrum have different refractive indices, you'd be getting a different colour band being refracted towards the camera at the different angles.

So in other words, the Earth's atmosphere is basically acting as a giant prism (or lens, depending on how you look -- har, har -- at it) in this picture.

06-01-2004, 12:13 PM	#1
Undertoad Radical Centrist Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Cottage of Prussia Posts: 31,423	6/1/2004: Green flash at sunrise This Earth sci pic of the day shows an actual phenomenon - where the Sun's light, traveling through a lot of Earth atmosphere, gets "squashed" and separated until it looks like this. I can't remember ever seeing it this squished...

06-01-2004, 02:21 PM	#2
lookout123 changed his status to single Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Right behind you. No, the other side. Posts: 10,308	that is a beautiful shot. i'm sure there are evil rays of death (technical term) meant to cook our brains found with this phenomenon? __________________ Getting knocked down is no sin, it's not getting back up that's the sin

06-01-2004, 04:54 PM	#5
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	Didn't Henry Fonda talk about the green flash in, "On Golden Pond"? __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

06-01-2004, 04:10 PM	#4
chrisinhouston Professor Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Houston TX Posts: 1,857	There are some other good photos at http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/GF/pictures.html

06-01-2004, 08:28 PM	#6
mrputter Superior Inhabitant Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada Posts: 71	<EM>> it looks like the red, orange, yellow, green part of</EM> Well, that kinda makes sense to me. Given the curvature of the Earth, the sun's rays are hitting the atmosphere at different angles as you move up from the horizon, and since the different bands of the spectrum have different refractive indices, you'd be getting a different colour band being refracted towards the camera at the different angles. So in other words, the Earth's atmosphere is basically acting as a giant prism (or lens, depending on how you look -- har, har -- at it) in this picture.

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