What causes the familiar twinkling effect seen by the naked eye?
Answer
Refraction due to pockets of varying temperature and density in the air.
The twinkling effect, which is observable even without professional instruments, arises directly from the dynamic nature of Earth's atmosphere. As light travels from a distant star, it must pass through layers of air that are constantly in motion. These moving air cells possess differing temperatures and densities, which causes the light ray to be bent, or refracted, slightly and randomly many times per second. This continuous, minute shifting of the light path results in the observed twinkling phenomenon. This is categorized as a time-dependent issue, contrasting with fixed problems like molecular absorption.
Related Questions
What causes the familiar twinkling effect seen by the naked eye?What specific phenomenon describes atmospheric gases blocking certain wavelengths of light?What is the primary function of adaptive optics used in ground-based observation?How does cosmic dust within the Milky Way primarily impede viewing distant stars?Which wavelengths are particularly affected by scattering from cosmic dust?What geometric principle dictates the rapid decrease in received energy from distant stars?Why is capturing meaningful signal from extremely distant objects difficult despite large mirrors?What system do astronomers rely on to gauge the remoteness of distant objects?What role do Cepheid variables and Type Ia supernovae serve in calibration?What happens to errors in the initial rungs of the cosmic distance ladder?