Editing Tyndall effect (section)

== Similar phenomena different from Tyndall scattering ==
[[File:Tyndall Effect.jpg|thumb|[[Sunbeam]] exhibiting [[Mie scattering]] instead of Tyndall scattering.]]

When the day's sky is [[overcast]], [[sunlight]] passes through the [[turbid]]ity layer of the clouds, resulting in scattered, [[diffuse sky radiation|diffuse light]] on the ground ([[sunbeam]]). This exhibits [[Mie scattering]] instead of Tyndall scattering because the cloud droplets are larger than the wavelength of the light and scatters all colors approximately equally.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}} When the daytime sky is [[cloud cover|cloudless]], the sky's color is blue due to [[Rayleigh scattering]] instead of Tyndall scattering because the scattering particles are the air molecules, which are much smaller than the wavelengths of visible light.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Human color vision and the unsaturated blue color of the daytime sky |first=Glenn S. |last=Smith |journal=American Journal of Physics |volume=73 |issue=7 |pages=590–97 |year=2005|doi=10.1119/1.1858479 |bibcode=2005AmJPh..73..590S }}</ref> Similarly, the term ''Tyndall effect'' is incorrectly applied to light scattering by large, [[macroscopic scale|macroscopic]] [[dust]] particles in the air as due to their large size, they do not exhibit Tyndall scattering.<ref name=":1" />

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Comparison between the three main scattering processes undergone by visible light
|-
! Scattering process !! Particle type !! Particle size !! Resulting effect
|-
| Rayleigh scattering || Air molecule ({{chem2|N2}} and {{chem2|O2}}) || < 1 nanometer || Sky blue hue
|-
| Tyndall scattering || Colloidal particles in suspension || 50 nm to 1 μm || Blue scattered light
|-
| Mie scattering || Larger air dust, or cloud droplets || > 1 micrometer || All colors equally scattered
|}