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Credit & Copyright: T. Polakis
Explanation:
Isn't the Sun round? Yes, but in the above picture, the
Earth's atmosphere makes it appear almost square.
Here a layer of air near the Earth was so warm it acted like a giant lens, creating increasingly distorted
paths for sunlight to reach the camera.
Similarly, on a long flat highway, it may appear that
the road in the distance is covered with water. In this case,
light from the blue sky is being unusually refracted by warm air just above the dry road.
No matter how the
Earth's atmosphere makes the Sun appear, the
Sun will always be spherical. This setting Sun was
photographed over Lake Michigan in
Muskegon, MI.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Sun - Earth's atmosphere
Publications with words: Sun - Earth's atmosphere
See also:
- APOD: 2024 February 19 Á Looking Sideways from the Parker Solar Probe
- Circling the Sun
- APOD: 2023 December 11 Á Solar Minimum versus Solar Maximum
- APOD: 2023 November 19 Á Space Station, Solar Prominences, Sun
- APOD: 2023 October 25 Á Gone in 60 Seconds: A Green Flash Sunset
- Circular Sun Halo
- APOD: 2023 August 1 Á Monster Solar Prominence