Why does the sun appear yellow?

Answer: Atmosphere scatters blue light

Distance makes it yellow — Wrong. Distance doesn't change color—wavelength is intrinsic. The sun looks yellow because our atmosphere scatters shorter wavelengths.

Reflection from clouds — Wrong. Clouds don't color the sun. Atmosphere scatters blue light away (Rayleigh scattering), leaving yellow-orange wavelengths reaching our eyes.

Atmosphere scatters blue light ✓ — Correct! The sun emits white light (all colors). Earth's atmosphere scatters shorter wavelengths (blue, violet) more than longer ones (red, orange, yellow)—Rayleigh scattering. Blue light scatters across the sky, leaving yellow-orange light in direct sunlight. From space, the sun is white! At sunset, light travels through more atmosphere, scattering even more blue, making it red-orange!