What color is the sun really? Hey Ray
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - If you asked someone to color a picture of the Sun, most people would likely choose the yellow crayon.
Depending on the time of day, because we observe the Sun through our atmosphere, the Sun may look white at certain times, yellow at others, and orange or red under other circumstances.
If you look at the energy emitted from the Sun, you might be surprised at the color that is technically emitted. NASA says the sun actually emits energy at all wavelengths from radio to gamma-ray, and most of that energy is around 500 nm, which is close to blue-green light.
This means you can make the argument that the Sun is blue-green.
While blue green is where most of the energy falls, the Sun emits the other colors of the spectrum quite strongly, too. This includes red light and blue light. Essentially light in all the colors comes from the Sun.
NASA says all those colors in those light waves saturate the three-color cone cell receptors in our eyes. This makes us perceive the color as white.
Earth's atmosphere filters out certain colors of the spectrum, too, changing the color in which the Sun appears. It looks most whiteish during high noon, when the Sun is high in the sky, shining through the shallow part of our atmosphere.
Even more colors are left out as the Sun gets lower in the sky and shines through the thickest part of the atmosphere.
This leaves an orange or red color behind; so, the Sun's color is dependent on if you want to just look at it or look at its radiation. If you are just looking at the strongest energy, you can make an argument that a blueish-green is the color of our nearest star.