Book 7, Question 3
Why Do Clouds Look White?
Sunlight looks white, but it is really a mix of every color of the rainbow. A cloud is full of tiny water droplets that bounce sunlight in every direction. Because all the colors bounce back to your eyes together, you see a bright white cloud.
From the book
Page from A Million Whys Book 7
More fun facts
- The color of a cloud depends mostly on the color of the light that shines on it.
- Cloud droplets scatter all colors of light about equally, which makes clouds look bright white. Scientists call this non-selective scattering.
- The sky is blue for a different reason: tiny gas molecules in the air scatter blue light more than red.
- Blue light scatters about four times more strongly than red light.
- At sunrise and sunset, clouds can turn yellow, orange or pink because they are lit by reddish sunlight.
- Violet light scatters high in the atmosphere, where we can't easily see it.
Sources: NOAA, NASA Science
Questions kids ask
Why are clouds white but the sky is blue?
Cloud droplets scatter all colors about equally, but gas molecules in the air scatter blue light the most.
Why do clouds turn orange at sunset?
They are lit by reddish sunlight at that time of day.