color of sky

[yjj8817]

In the absence of an atmosphere, the color of the sky would be :

A blue
B black
C white
D red

From TBR physics optics chapter.

Why is C not the answer?

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[Cawolf]

Consider how the sky looks in space pictures, without an atmosphere - it is black.

Rayleigh scattering causes the sky to appear blue - with no particles, no scattering, no visible color.

White would be if all wavelengths of visible radiation were scattered, which would possibly be the correct choice if the atmosphere was much denser (not absent).

 

[yjj8817]

Consider how the sky looks in space pictures, without an atmosphere - it is black.

Rayleigh scattering causes the sky to appear blue - with no particles, no scattering, no visible color.

White would be if all wavelengths of visible radiation were scattered, which would possibly be the correct choice if the atmosphere was much denser (not absent).

If this is the case, then how do we see black objects around us like a black pen or car?

 

[OrdinaryDO]

Color is just a spectrum of light waves being absorbed by a material. If an object is white, then the pigment does not *theoretically* absorb any amount of light waves, therefore producing white color. A black object is one that absorbs ALL light waves. If an object is yellow, then it absorbs every light wave except waves of ~600nm (thus reflecting it back into the optics of your eyes).