Nov
11
Uluru is notable for changing colour, particularly a remarkable sight when it glows red. Why is this?
Byim really interested in this can you please help?
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The colour changes have more to do with the effects the earth’s atmosphere has on the sun’s rays than with the geological make-up of the rock.
When the sun is low in the sky the atmosphere acts as a giant prism, splitting the sun’s rays into a colour spectrum. The light reaching Uluru (and also the nearby Kata Tjuta) near sunrise and sunset is mainly from the RED end of the spectrum and its reflection from the rock gives the spectacular colour.
The reddish-brown colour of the rocks and surrounding sands enhance these effects.