Question

Which of the following colors is least scattered by fog, dust, or smoke?
A. Violet
B. Blue
C. Red
D. Yellow

Answer 1

Hint:Scattering of light is the phenomenon in which a light ray is diverted in all other directions after passing through particles with a size similar to the wavelength of the light used.
Rayleigh scattering is the scattering of light off of air molecules that can be extended to scattering from particles up to a tenth of the wavelength of the light employed.
Many distinct concepts, such as scattering cross-section, attenuation coefficients, the bidirectional scattering distribution function (BSDF), S-matrices, and mean free path, are used to quantify scattering.

Complete step-by-step solution:
Because red scatters the least by fog, dust, or smoke due to its long wavelength, it is utilized for signal lights so that it may be seen even in deep fog or haze.
Rayleigh scattering states that the longer the wavelength of radiation, the less it is dispersed.
The higher the scattering, the shorter the wavelength of light; this is why blue or violet light scatters the most and red light scatters the least.
Hence, option (C) is the correct answer.

Note:Air molecules do not scatter all colors equally; shorter wavelengths (violet, blue, and green) are scattered more than longer wavelengths (yellow, orange, red).
Because air molecules are so minute, they scatter light in this way (much smaller than the wavelength of visible light).
Small particles, such as NO2 and O2, scatter light at shorter wavelengths (such as blue and violet visible light). Blue light is more heavily scattered in the atmosphere than longer wavelength red light because it is at the short-wavelength end of the visible spectrum.