Is sunlight white light?

Question

my husband keeps trying to tell me that sunlight is yellow but i was always told it was white and it makes sense because white light holds all the main colors making a rainbow when the air is moist please tell us the right answer ^_^

thanks

Answer 1

See:

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap060423.html

The sun appears yellow, and the spectral intensity of light reaching sea level is slightly greater in the yellow-green ... but sunlight is a mixture of wavelengths.

So you are correct that sunlight is a mixture, and appears mostly white.  And your husband is correct if he is saying sunlight has slightly more warm yellow-green than other wavelengths.

For a technical question like this, you have to EXACTLY define EXACTLY what you are disputing ... it otherwise gets complicated pretty quick and the answers are not always black and white.

Answer 2

yes u r right in saying that sunlight is white but ur husband is also not wrong

sunlight contsisits of 7 colors VIBGYOR which forms a spectrum

when white light falls on any object is gets partially absorbed and partially reflected the reflected color falls on our eye and we think that the object is of that color but on the contrary it is that color which the objects throws out!!

Answer 3

Go easy on him, will ya?  Lol.

Sunlight is composed of every color. When Sunlight passes through a prism, the light is separated into a rainbow of different colors.

Our Sun emits almost every wavelength of light, even

light our eyes can't see.

So technically, you are both right.  (Have to give the guy some credit, MEN ARE SMARTER!!)

Ok, the hard part......... I'll have to side with the you (the girl)....  You are RIGHT............... grrrrrrr.   SORRY!  I shouldn't betray men like this!

Answer 4

Sunlight does in fact contain all the colors of the rainbow, and quite a few others that we cannot see both "above" (Ultra Violet) and "below" (Infra Red). I think that makes you the winner of the debate (apologies to Hubby).  

Answer 5

Sunlight is a combination of almost all the colors we see, and also, some of the wavelengths we cant see.

So yes, you are right in saying that sunlight is white :)