Why do stars in the night's sky appear to twinkle?
user
Twinkling stars have wobbly light, which can be modeled by the vibration of a stretched string.  In addition, the eye also acts like a lens with a particular focal length, which produces a natural telescope effect that can make stars look bigger or smaller, depending on where you’re looking.
assistant
Isn't it because the light of stars bends as it goes through our atmosphere?
user
Yes, twinkling happens because light is passing through the Earth’s atmosphere and is influenced by the atmosphere’s temperature, pressure, and other factors.
assistant
How come the sun's light doesn't also twinkle as it goes through our atmosphere?
user
The sun’s light is focused by the sun’s gravity, which is much stronger than the Earth’s gravity.  When the sun’s light hits our atmosphere, the light is going more or less in a straight line, so it doesn’t have to bend much to get through.
assistant
Why do stars in the night's sky appear to twinkle?
user
Twinkling stars have wobbly light, which can be modeled by the vibration of a stretched string.  In addition, the eye also acts like a lens with a particular focal length, which produces a natural telescope effect that can make stars look bigger or smaller, depending on where you’re looking.
assistant
Isn't it because the light of stars bends as it goes through our atmosphere?
user
Yes, twinkling happens because light is passing through the Earth’s atmosphere and is influenced by the atmosphere’s temperature, pressure, and other factors.
assistant
How come the sun's light doesn't also twinkle as it goes through our atmosphere?
user
The sun’s light doesn’t “twinkle” because there isn’t an atmosphere in its vicinity that would have the same effect on the light.
assistant
Why do stars in the night's sky appear to twinkle?