How can we see through our atmosphere

Question

Apologies for the simpleton question, but how exactly can we see objects around us if our atmosphere is made up of a vast amount of nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide and myriad other such atoms and molecules? Surely such atoms should be "blocking" out view, like trillions of tiny billiard balls? Or can we see "through" atoms, due to their being made up of mostly empty space or due to something stranger and more complex such as their wave-particle duality?

Answer 1

You can see through many things: glass, water and other liquids etc.. What you see however is a matter of what is being transmitted or re-transmitted by the particles present in the medium, after some waves-lengths will be reflected or absorbed.