The reason things change with the angle of the sun comes down to two main factors: path length and intensity. ☀️

1. Intensity (The "Flashlight" Effect) 🔦

When the sun is high (noon), its light hits a small area directly. As the angle decreases (sunrise/sunset), the same amount of sunlight is spread out over a much larger area.

• Result: The energy is "diluted," which is why it feels cooler when the sun is low.

2. Path Length (The Atmosphere Filter) 🌍

When the sun is low, light travels through a much thicker layer of the Earth's atmosphere to reach you.

• Scattering: The atmosphere acts like a filter. It scatters away blue/violet light and lets the warmer reds and oranges through. This is why sunsets look more vibrant and red. 🌅

3. Shadows 👤

The angle of the sun dictates the geometry of shadows.

• High sun: Shadows are short and directly beneath objects.
• Low sun: Shadows become long and stretched out because the light rays are hitting at a sharp, glancing angle. 📏

In short: The lower the angle, the more the atmosphere "filters" the light and the more the light gets stretched across the landscape! 🎨