Why do mountains look blue from far away when they are made of green trees ?
In: Planetary Science
Our Australian ‘Blue Mountains’ region has that name because when viewed from a distance they look blue; this is due to the eucalyptus oils which linger over the forested hills creating the blue, hazy aura.
I would imagine the phenomenon is similar for most forested mountains but may be amplified by the particular tree species dominant in the area.
The same reason the sky is blue…air scatters blue light. When you look at the sky, you are seeing the blackness of space covered by a bunch of blue light scattered by the air in the way. When you look at a mountain, you are seeing the colors of the mountain covered by blue light scattered by air in the way.
Atmospheric scattering.
The air scatters blue light more than red light. For things that are far enough away, you can see that color.
Just like how glass looks colorless, but if you get a large block of glass you can see that it has color (e.g. the glass most mirrors are made out of is slightly green.)
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