Here's why:
* Atmospheric Refraction: Refraction, the bending of light as it passes through different mediums, does play a role in how we see the sun. It causes the sun to appear slightly higher in the sky than it actually is, especially near the horizon.
* The Illusion: Our brains perceive the sun as a flat disk, and when it's near the horizon, it appears stretched out horizontally due to the way our brains interpret the light. This is similar to how we see a round object like a coin appear elliptical when viewed at an angle.
* Other Factors: The amount of atmospheric haze and the angle at which we are viewing the sun can also contribute to the illusion of a flattened sun.
In summary: Refraction affects the apparent position of the sun, but the flattening effect is an optical illusion created by how our brains process the image of the sun near the horizon.
