Why does the Moon sometimes look Yellow?

  • My friend and I both noticed that the Moon looked yellow Yesterday, but it wasn't like that the same time the day before, as far as I remember.



    Does the Moon sometimes look Yellow? If it does, why does it?


  • LocalFluff

    LocalFluff Correct answer

    8 years ago

    Because light with higher frequency, that is bluer colors, scatters more in Earth's atmosphere and celestial objects thus look redder (yellow is towards red) while the atmosphere looks blue. See Rayleigh scattering.
    Here is video with a lengthy and somewhat entertaining explanation:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRh75B5iotI


    I would say rather that celestial bodies only look redder (in noticeable terms) when lower down in the sky, where the scattering is more pronounced due to the increased thickness of atmosphere through which the light must travel.

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Content dated before 7/24/2021 11:53 AM