If you have ever wondered why the color of the sea and the ocean is blue, surely when asking others you have ever heard one of the urban legends that explains why the sea is blue which says it is because it is reflected in him the sky. However, this explanation is false and, in fact, when the sky takes different shades and colors, the sea water remains blue. Therefore, if you want to understand the reason why the sea is really blue and explain it to the children, then it is better that you continue reading Green Ecologist, because in this article we explain why the sea is blue for children.
What is color explained for children
The first thing to keep in mind to explain to children and adults why the sea is blue is to understand what is the color. In reality, the colors are the result of the the way light reflects off objects. In fact, we do not see colors, but light reflected from objects that, upon reaching our eyes, and later on to our brain, our body interprets creating the image of the objects and the world that surrounds us.
However, it must be borne in mind that the light that objects reflect is not all the light that reaches them. In reality, bodies absorb a part of that light and reflect it another part and, once it is reflected, that will be the light that will reach our eyes and that we will see, giving rise to the colors that we see. In this way, the light that the different objects absorb will be just the color that we will not see, since it will have previously lost it when absorbing the light from this part of the spectrum.
In other words, the colors are the light that is reflected in the bodies and that reaches our eyes. In this way, if we see an object of red color, it will be because the object has absorbed the rest of the light of the color spectrum, allowing only the part of light that corresponds to that color to be reflected.
Why the sea is blue - explanation for children
Assuming that we already know what color is and how we see it depending on how objects reflect light, we can understand why the sea is blue. This is because water absorbs the part of the spectrum of light that corresponds mainly to the part of the red and infrared colors. Thus, the part of the spectrum Visible light that is reflected to a greater degree is that which corresponds to blue, which makes ocean water appear this color when reflected light hits our eyes.
In addition, other factors must be taken into account, such as the fact that sea water is not pure water, which makes the tones that it can take are modified by the different elements that are dissolved in it, especially minerals, although pollution can also cause the color of sea water to appear in different shades.
Learn more about this interesting topic in this other article by Green Ecologist on Why sea water changes color.
But isn't the water transparent?
According to what we have just seen, the water absorbs the light corresponding to the red part of the light spectrum, which makes it reflect the most bluish part and, consequently, the light that reaches our eyes reflected in the sea is seen in shades of blue. But, when we see other bodies of water, such as the one we can serve in a glass, it is completely transparent in color. How is it possible?
This is because the part of the light absorbed by the water is proportional to the amount of water that we have. Thus, when we say that the water is transparent, we are not being entirely sincere. The correct thing would be to say that, in small quantities, the water is transparent, whereas, in larger quantities, the water is blue.
We can observe this phenomenon especially well when we have water bodies of different sizes in front of us, and it will allow children understand why sea water is blue and in the glass it is transparent much better.
If we drink a glass of water, it is visible that it is water with a transparent appearance. However, if we look closely at the water in a bathtub or a swimming pool with a white background, we will see that, although it is timidly, the water begins to take a slightly bluish color. This becomes much more palpable as we expand the size of the body of water, since the amount of red and infrared light that is absorbed is greater, until we reach sea water, which is the largest body of water that we can. observe and, consequently, also the one that absorbs the most of this part of the spectrum light.
Now that the children have understood the reason for the color of the sea and the ocean, you may be interested in explaining why sea water is salty, based on this other article.
If you want to read more articles similar to Why the sea is blue for childrenWe recommend that you enter our Nature Curiosities category.
