Does the Sun Sink Into the Sea?
Solve the sunset mystery and discover why the Sun seems to disappear below the ocean horizon.
Read along
At the beach, the Sun can look as if it is slowly sinking into the sea. But the Sun is not moving down into the water. Earth is a spinning planet, turning once about every 24 hours. As the part of Earth where we are standing rotates away from the Sun, the Sun appears lower and lower in the sky. The horizon hides it from view even though it is still shining on another part of the planet. Sunlight also travels through more atmosphere near sunset. Tiny particles and gases scatter much of the blue light, allowing more red and orange light to reach our eyes. The Sun never splashes into the ocean—Earth's rotation creates the beautiful sunset we see.
Inside the story
Scene by scene
Pause, look closer, and discover the science behind each part of the adventure.
Scene 0101
A Sun on the horizon
“From the shore, the glowing Sun seems to touch the water and begin sinking into the sea.”
The horizon is the distant line where the land or water appears to meet the sky. It is an effect of viewing Earth's curved surface.
Scene 0202
Earth turns away
“Earth keeps rotating, carrying our side of the planet away from the Sun and into nighttime.”
Earth rotates from west to east, so the Sun appears to travel from east to west across our sky even though Earth is doing the turning.
Scene 0303
A sky full of color
“The low sunlight crosses more air, painting the sky with warm reds, oranges, and pinks.”
Air molecules scatter shorter blue wavelengths more strongly. Near sunset, the longer path through the atmosphere leaves more warm-colored light visible.
Keep wondering