Sundown is the hour for many strange effects

There is nothing I love more than to sit on the beach, watching the calm waters and the sun going down.  Some very beautiful views that I love sharing. I took this photo several weeks ago at the beautiful shoalwater beach in Rockingham, Western Australia.  I cannot resist these beauties of nature which speak through my heart & soul.  I go out purposely to take photos and to just be alone with my thoughts......

Each and every time it stimulates my emotions with its sheer beauty.   Alone, or time spent with loved ones, during a sunset, sat just few meters away from the shore, I cannot think of anything better.  I feel at total peace, I feel calm, I feel passionate, I feel alive and I feel blessed to be alive to see its beauty.

What I am also fascinated in, about this amazing natural optical phenomena, is the scientific explanation of how it occurs.  During the twilight period of the day, when the sun is in the horizon, the clear sky around the solar disc takes on an orange-yellow glow.  The colours in the red/yellow end of the spectrum dominate because the optically thick intervening air has scattered out all the blue wavelengths from the sunlight before it reaches our eyes.  Dust and other particles enhance the reddening, and the more large particles in the air mass between the sun and the observer, the redder the sunset/sunrise.  The effect can be even more dramatic when clouds are present as they add texture to the sky colour producing various shades and shadows.

As the sun sets, the sky above it glows a pale yellow.  As twilight progresses towards sunset, the twilight arch becomes pink with yellow and orange beneath.  When the sun drops below the horizon, as in my picture above, only the red wavelengths remain, the longer wavelengths that have more atmosphere to pass through.  

As twilight continues, the twilight arch slowly flattens, and the sky above darkens from blue-grey to deep blue before merging into the darkness of night.

Now, that may be of interest to you or not, but next time you see one, just sit for a moment and have a think about the amazing atmospheric and optical phenomenon that is taking place to create such beauty.