A beam of blue, green and yellow light passes through the earth's atmosphere. Name the colour which is scattered (a) the least, (b) the most

Answer

To solve the question regarding the scattering of blue, green, and yellow light in the Earth's atmosphere, we can follow these steps:

### Step 1: Understand the Concept of Scattering
Scattering of light refers to the process where light is forced to deviate from a straight trajectory due to non-uniformities in the medium it passes through. The amount of scattering is influenced by the wavelength of the light.

**Hint:** Remember that shorter wavelengths scatter more than longer wavelengths.

### Step 2: Know the Relationship Between Wavelength and Scattering
The scattering of light is inversely proportional to the wavelength. This means that light with a shorter wavelength will scatter more, while light with a longer wavelength will scatter less.

**Hint:** Think about which colors correspond to shorter and longer wavelengths.

### Step 3: Identify the Wavelengths of the Given Colors
- Blue light has a shorter wavelength (approximately 450 nm).
- Green light has a medium wavelength (approximately 520 nm).
- Yellow light has a longer wavelength (approximately 580 nm).

**Hint:** Consider the order of colors in the visible spectrum to determine their wavelengths.

### Step 4: Determine Which Color Scatters the Least
Since yellow light has the longest wavelength among the three colors, it will scatter the least.

**Hint:** Recall that longer wavelengths mean less scattering.

### Step 5: Determine Which Color Scatters the Most
Conversely, blue light has the shortest wavelength, which means it will scatter the most.

**Hint:** Shorter wavelengths result in greater scattering.

### Final Answers
(a) The color which is scattered the least: **Yellow**
(b) The color which is scattered the most: **Blue**