Chapter 3 Flashcards
When light passes through a prism of glass,
Refraction changes the directions of different color or wavelengths of light
Electromagnetic radiation moving through space with the speed of light consists of oscillating
Electric and magnetic fields, always inseparable, always having the same frequency and wavelength and traveling in the same direction
1 nm is
10^-9 m
Visible wavelengths of EM radiation have a range of wavelengths of
400 nm to 700 nm
All forms of light have what property in common?
All forms of light are EM radiation
The speed of light is
3 x 10^8 m/s
300,000,000 m/s
Visible light occupies what position in the EM spectrum?
Between infrared and uv
EM radiation ordered in wavelength from shortest to longest
Gamma, x, uv, visible, infrared, micro, radio
X rays and visible light are
The same except X-rays have shorter wavelengths than visible
The main reason for building large optical telescopes on the earth’s surface is to
Collect more light from faint objects
What is refraction of light?
Change in direction of a light rat when it reflects on a material more dense than the one in which it is traveling
What causes chromatic aberration in the objective lens of a telescope?
Different colors are refracted through different angles at each surface of the lens
By was adaptive optics developed?
To compensate for image distortion caused by the Earth’s atmosphere
One major difference between radio waves and light is that
Radio waves have longer wavelengths Han light waves
Secondary effects if gamma rays, such as he blue light produced when the particles they collide with move faster than he speed of light in air. This blue light is called
Cherenkov light
