The combination of a blue sky, dark overhead, lighter near the horizon, along with a reddened Sun at either sunrise or sunset, can all be explained scientifically, along with the blue color of the oceans as an independent phenomenon. Here’s the science of how it works. (Pexels)

This Is Why Earth’s Oceans And Skies Are Blue

Neither one reflects the other; they’re both blue for entirely different reasons.

If you’ve ever been curious about the world you live in, you’ve probably wondered why the sky is blue. The incorrect answers that people often give in response include:

• that sunlight has a blue tint,
• that oxygen itself is a blue-colored gas,
• or that the sky reflects the oceans.

While none of those answers are correct, that last attempt brings up a related question that people often wonder about: why are the oceans blue?

As seen from space, planet Earth is often described as a pale blue dot, but it’s only the oceans that appear blue-hued. The continents, clouds, and ice caps don’t appear blue at all; it’s the oceans, not the atmosphere, that give our planet its overall complexion. For thousands of years, humanity had to simply accept these properties of our world as facts. But with the advances of modern science, we understand why both the skies and oceans are blue.

When the Sun is high overhead, the sky towards the zenith is a much darker blue, while the sky towards the horizon is a lighter, brighter cyan color. This is due to the larger amount of atmosphere, and the larger amount of scattered light, that is visible at low angles on the sky.(KARSTEN KETTERMANN / PIXABAY)