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Except during atmospheric conditions that are quite rare (sub-refraction, or negative refractivity gradient versus altitude), light ... as well as radio and other electromagnetic radiation ... generally bends downward on its way through air.

So, when the light beam from the star reaches your eye, it's arriving from a direction that is slightly above the actual direction from the star, and the effect is that the star appears to be higher than it really is.

If, instead of from a star, the light had started out from a palm tree, a pool of water, and a couple of camels, and had bent significantly downward on its way through the air, it would arrive at your eye from a direction significantly above the horizon, and you would see the mirage of an oasis in the sky.

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βˆ™ 15y ago
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βˆ™ 4mo ago

Stars appear higher in the sky due to atmospheric refraction, where the Earth's atmosphere bends the light from the stars slightly downwards. This causes them to appear higher in the sky than their actual position.

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Q: Why do stars appear higher than the actual position?
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What is warm air near Earth's surface sometimes bends light rays to cause an effect called?

The effect is called "atmospheric refraction." It occurs when light rays passing through air at different temperatures are bent, causing objects to appear shifted from their actual position. This is why stars and the Sun can appear slightly higher in the sky than they actually are when near the horizon.


Why do some stars appear bigger and brighter than others?

A stars brightness depends on two factors; its distance from us and its actual brightness (absolute magnitude). The actual brightness of a star depends on various factors, such as its mass, its temperature and its age.Consider two stars of the same actual brightness (absolute magnitude) - if one of them is much closer, then is will be brighter than the further one. It will appear brighter, even though it would be the same side by side - it can be said to be apparently brighter (higher apparent magnitude) due to its distance.A:They appear bigger and brighter because they really are bigger and brighter, but even if they are not bigger and brighter it could be because they are closer.


When esimating the distance of the stars from earth astronomers use the fact that nearby stars shift in position as observed from earth which is called?

Nearby stars appear to change their position against the distant background in an annual cycle, because of the Earth's changing position 'across' its orbit. This apparent shift is called the star's "parallax".


What time do stars come out at night?

Stars begin to appear at night as the sun sets and the sky darkens. The exact time can vary depending on location, time of year, and atmospheric conditions, but generally stars start becoming visible after twilight fades.


What is higher for closer stars A absolute magnitude B red shift C parallax D blue shift?

The answer would be C) Parallax.The Absolute Magnitude of a star is the star's actual brightness, and is therefore not dependent upon the position of the observer.Red Shift and Blue Shift are consequences of a stars speed relative to the observer. Again this is independent of the stars proximity to the observer.Parallax, is the apparent change in position based upon the motion of the observer, and is directly proportional to the proximity of the object. Just as, when driving on the road distant trees or buildings don't appear to zoom past you as quickly as a pedestrian on the side of the road, so it is with stars. The closer they are the larger the parallax is as the Earth orbits the Sun, for example.

Related questions

Why do the stars appear to rotate around Polaris?

It's an illusion caused by the actual rotation of the earth.


Why do stars appear higher in the sky than its actual position?

This is called refraction and it is due to the bending of the ray of light from the star as it enters the atmosphere which has a changing refractive index at different heights. This effect occurs at all heights (angles) but is more noticeable close to the horizon and it alters the time of sunrise and sunset by a few minutes.


What is warm air near Earth's surface sometimes bends light rays to cause an effect called?

The effect is called "atmospheric refraction." It occurs when light rays passing through air at different temperatures are bent, causing objects to appear shifted from their actual position. This is why stars and the Sun can appear slightly higher in the sky than they actually are when near the horizon.


Why some stars appear bigger and brighter than others?

A stars brightness depends on two factors; its distance from us and its actual brightness (absolute magnitude). The actual brightness of a star depends on various factors, such as its mass, its temperature and its age.Consider two stars of the same actual brightness (absolute magnitude) - if one of them is much closer, then is will be brighter than the further one. It will appear brighter, even though it would be the same side by side - it can be said to be apparently brighter (higher apparent magnitude) due to its distance.A:They appear bigger and brighter because they really are bigger and brighter, but even if they are not bigger and brighter it could be because they are closer.


Why do some stars appear bigger and brighter than others?

A stars brightness depends on two factors; its distance from us and its actual brightness (absolute magnitude). The actual brightness of a star depends on various factors, such as its mass, its temperature and its age.Consider two stars of the same actual brightness (absolute magnitude) - if one of them is much closer, then is will be brighter than the further one. It will appear brighter, even though it would be the same side by side - it can be said to be apparently brighter (higher apparent magnitude) due to its distance.A:They appear bigger and brighter because they really are bigger and brighter, but even if they are not bigger and brighter it could be because they are closer.


What causes the stars in the sky to appear to be moving?

The apparent movement of stars in the sky is due to the Earth's rotation on its axis. As the Earth spins, different stars come into view while others disappear below the horizon. This motion creates the illusion that the stars are moving across the sky.


When esimating the distance of the stars from earth astronomers use the fact that nearby stars shift in position as observed from earth which is called?

Nearby stars appear to change their position against the distant background in an annual cycle, because of the Earth's changing position 'across' its orbit. This apparent shift is called the star's "parallax".


Why do stars appear to shift position as you observe them one month and then again on the same date the next month?

the earth is rotating and revolving, so they are appear in different places


It cause stars to move apparently in one night?

The rotation of the Earth makes the stars appear to move in a circle, as viewed from the observer's position. The stars are always there, it is just that we can't see them during daylight.


Why do all stars appear to move except the pole star?

All stars appear to move due to Earth's rotation, but the Pole Star, also known as Polaris, remains in a relatively fixed position in the sky because it is located almost directly above Earth's North Pole. This causes it to appear stationary as other stars appear to rotate around it.


Why do stars appear distant if you supposedly only see the light that they emit?

All sight its based on the light that objects either emit, reflect, or refract. The stars are little different in this regard. We judge distance using a number of different cues, a number of which indicate that the stars are far away.More distant objects will tend to appear smaller. The stars appear small.Any object that blocks a portion of the sky will block the stars from view, so we know the stars are more distant than those objects.When we move, objects we are looking at appear to change position relative to us. The farther away they are, the smaller the change. No matter how much we move there is no apparent change in the position of the stars, meaning they must be very far away.Indeed, the stars are much farther away than they appear to be as we are not able to perceive such distances directly.


Are the stars visible 7 pm still visible at 11 pm in their original position why do you see so?

Yes, relative to more distant stars, their position will not have changed. See should be changed to stay in the question.