So why is snow the color white and not clear? Is it because of the way it freezes?
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Its white because there is lots of it.
A single snowflake is pretty transparent but lets say it reflects about 5% of the light(and since it reflects all light equally it reflects white light)
Now there is thousands of snowflakes and if each one reflects 5% it starts to add up quickly so lets say by the time you have 50 snowflakes stacked they would reflect over 90% of the light.
Also because the snowflakes how very intricate and diverse shape- they disperse the light in all different direction which is why the light reflected is white – and not a mirror.
It’s because of “total internal reflection”.
All water, when reflecting light at a shallow angle, will completely reflect it. This causes glare on the surface of still water, and causes choppy water to appear white.
It also causes snow to appear white. There’s just too many angles for the light to go through, at least one of them is going to be shallow, and will cause reflection, making the whole snow white.
(Fun fact, this is the same thing that makes polar bears white. Their fur is actually clear, and their skin is black, it’s only reflection that causes the white color.)
A white wall looks white because it reflects* all visible light in essentially all directions randomly. Our eyes see this light coming from the wall without any order and therefore it doesn’t look like a mirror.
Similarly, snow has so many surfaces for the light to be reflected and refracted through (each snowflake has numerous surfaces) that the light comes out without any order either. As this happens for all visible light it appears white like the wall. When water freezes together to make ice, its crystalline structure allows all light to pass right through and maintain its order though it might be distorted. If you break/crack ice it looks white as you introduced many surfaces like in snow.
*Actually, the wall also transmits the light similar to how snow does. When you dye a fabric you change what light is transmitted through the fibers so this is the light that makes its way back out of the material. I had a professor show us a blue marker that actually reflects red light. This reflected light is very dim so you can’t see it unless the material beneath can absorb most or all blue light (like black paper) rather than allowing it to be transmitted (like in white paper).
Its white because there is lots of it.
A single snowflake is pretty transparent but lets say it reflects about 5% of the light(and since it reflects all light equally it reflects white light)
Now there is thousands of snowflakes and if each one reflects 5% it starts to add up quickly so lets say by the time you have 50 snowflakes stacked they would reflect over 90% of the light.
Also because the snowflakes how very intricate and diverse shape- they disperse the light in all different direction which is why the light reflected is white – and not a mirror.
Snow is actually clear it just looks that way because it’s conjoined multiple interlocked solid state molecular tension or layered and diffusing photonic transfer ratio.
It’s because of “total internal reflection”.
All water, when reflecting light at a shallow angle, will completely reflect it. This causes glare on the surface of still water, and causes choppy water to appear white.
It also causes snow to appear white. There’s just too many angles for the light to go through, at least one of them is going to be shallow, and will cause reflection, making the whole snow white.
(Fun fact, this is the same thing that makes polar bears white. Their fur is actually clear, and their skin is black, it’s only reflection that causes the white color.)
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A white wall looks white because it reflects* all visible light in essentially all directions randomly. Our eyes see this light coming from the wall without any order and therefore it doesn’t look like a mirror.
Similarly, snow has so many surfaces for the light to be reflected and refracted through (each snowflake has numerous surfaces) that the light comes out without any order either. As this happens for all visible light it appears white like the wall. When water freezes together to make ice, its crystalline structure allows all light to pass right through and maintain its order though it might be distorted. If you break/crack ice it looks white as you introduced many surfaces like in snow.
*Actually, the wall also transmits the light similar to how snow does. When you dye a fabric you change what light is transmitted through the fibers so this is the light that makes its way back out of the material. I had a professor show us a blue marker that actually reflects red light. This reflected light is very dim so you can’t see it unless the material beneath can absorb most or all blue light (like black paper) rather than allowing it to be transmitted (like in white paper).
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Snow is actually clear it just looks that way because it’s conjoined multiple interlocked solid state molecular tension or layered and diffusing photonic transfer ratio.
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