[00:00] In most places on Earth, the sun&nbsp; is guaranteed to set every evening,&nbsp;&nbsp; What makes some so much more colorful than others? The main ingredients for a sunset are&nbsp;&nbsp;
[00:15] the gases – nitrogen and oxygen –&nbsp; that make up Earth’s atmosphere. These particles are small, and when sunlight&nbsp; passing through the atmosphere hits them,&nbsp;&nbsp; short wavelengths of light, like blues,&nbsp; tend to scatter away in random directions.
[00:28] This leaves a greater proportion&nbsp; of longer-wavelength light behind. This is why, during the day, the sun&nbsp; looks yellow, and the sky looks blue. light has to pass through a lot more&nbsp; atmosphere before reaching your eyes,&nbsp;&nbsp;
[00:43] so even more of the short-wavelength light gets&nbsp; scattered away, leaving behind a greater and&nbsp;&nbsp; greater proportion of longer-wavelength&nbsp; colors, toward deep oranges and red. This scattering alone can make a pretty nice&nbsp; sunset, assuming you can see the horizon.
[00:58] But to have a great sunset, you also&nbsp; need clouds, which can block sunlight,&nbsp;&nbsp; cast shadows, and add contrast&nbsp; if there aren’t too many of them. Clouds also reflect sunset colors, filling&nbsp; the otherwise blue sky with oranges and reds.
[01:13] clouds tend to be illuminated by sunset light&nbsp; even after the sun sinks behind the horizon. What’s more, since different wavelengths of&nbsp; light reach different parts of clouds – and&nbsp;&nbsp;
[01:26] clouds at different altitudes – they&nbsp; can reflect a range of different colors,&nbsp;&nbsp; Solid particles in the atmosphere – like&nbsp; dust, smoke, smog, and pollen – bounce light&nbsp;&nbsp;
[01:39] around a lot like clouds do, but their overall&nbsp; effect depends on both their size and location. Particles high in the atmosphere – such as ash&nbsp; from a volcano or distant wildfire – will bounce&nbsp;&nbsp; some of a sunset’s colorful light down toward&nbsp; your eyes, making it look even more vibrant.
[01:55] But particles in the lower atmosphere will obscure&nbsp; your view of the sunset, making it look murky. subpar sunsets – although many cities have less&nbsp; low-lying smog today than they did in the past,&nbsp;&nbsp;
[02:10] thanks to laws limiting how many pollutants cars&nbsp; and factories are allowed to spew into the air. So, some places, like beaches,&nbsp; open fields, or mountain ranges,&nbsp;&nbsp; but in the end, all you really need is&nbsp; an evening with the right conditions…
[02:29] then you’re all set.