Why does the sun rise appear 2 minutes earlier and the sunset 2 minutes later than when the actual event takes place?

Answer 1

It is a concept of refraction. The sun is starting to rise and the sun's rays hit the

clouds, causing it to seem like the sun is already starting to rise. The sun sets two

minutes later the same way.

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Clouds have nothing to do with refraction.

-- Shining through air causes light to bend, almost always slightly downward.

-- If the light from the setting sun curves slightly downward on its way to you,

then it appears to you as if the sun is slightly higher in the sky than it really is.

-- In the couple of minutes immediately after the sun sets below the horizon,

it still appears as if it's above the horizon.

In very extreme atmospheric conditions ... like in harsh deserts ... the curvature of

light through air can be extreme, and objects can appear to be much higher in the

sky than they really are. That's how you get the 'mirage' of an oasis in the sky,

plus legends of flying horses and magic carpets, from the Arabian desert.