Science & history · Light and energy
What colour is the Sun?
Astronomers call the Sun a yellow dwarf, but the light it gives out is white.
White light
In photographs from space the Sun appears white because it emits all the colours we can see at once. "Yellow dwarf" is a classification, not a description of what the light looks like.
Why it looks yellow, orange or red
Air scatters blue light more than other colours, which is why the sky is blue. Remove some blue from white sunlight and what reaches you looks yellower; near the horizon the light crosses so much more air that it can look orange or red.
Sources
- NASA Scientific Visualization Studio Why Does NASA Observe the Sun in Different Colors? (opens in a new tab) for the Sun appears white because it emits all visible colours; SDO's colours stand for wavelengths, temperatures and regions · checked 2 October 2026
- NASA Space Place Why Is the Sky Blue? (opens in a new tab) for scattering of shorter wavelengths; redder low Sun · checked 2 October 2026