Did you know that life on Earth wouldn’t be possible without light? Light is super important because it keeps us warm, helps plants grow, and lets us see all the beautiful colors around us, like rainbows and sunsets. Imagine trying to find your way in the dark without light!
Light is a type of energy that we can see when it bounces off objects. It travels in waves, kind of like the waves in the ocean, but much smaller. The different colors we see are because of the different sizes of these light waves. The light we see every day is called the visible spectrum, which is just a tiny part of the whole electromagnetic spectrum. In fact, our eyes can only see less than one percent of all light!
There are types of light that we can’t see, like ultraviolet (UV) light. Some animals, like bees and reindeer, can see UV light, which helps them find food. Scorpions even glow under UV light! Scientists use UV light to find clues that are invisible to the naked eye. When you see a black light, it makes some things glow, like white clothes or certain marks on your skin.
Light is incredibly fast, traveling at 186,000 miles per second! It takes about eight minutes for sunlight to travel 93 million miles to reach Earth. If you could travel at the speed of light, you could circle the Earth seven and a half times in just one second!
Light can move through clear things like air, water, and glass. These are called transparent objects. But light can’t pass through everything. Opaque objects, like walls, block light completely. Translucent objects, like stained glass or wax paper, let some light through, but it scatters in different directions. Even your hand is a bit translucent; try holding it up to the sun and see how it glows!
Light usually travels in a straight line, but it can change direction. Reflection happens when light bounces off a surface, like when a lamp helps you read a book. The moon looks like it shines because it reflects sunlight. Refraction is when light bends as it passes through something, like a magnifying glass or water. A triangular prism can split light into a rainbow of colors, a discovery made by Isaac Newton in the 1600s.
When light is blocked by an opaque object, it creates a shadow. You can see your shadow on the ground when the sun is shining. Light is also used to create electricity, known as solar power. Plants use sunlight to make their food through a process called photosynthesis.
Light can do amazing things, like helping astronauts. Jim Lavelle, an astronaut on Apollo 13, once saw glowing algae in the ocean that helped guide his plane safely back to a ship. This glow is called bioluminescence, and it can be a lifesaver!
Light is truly amazing, and we couldn’t live without it!
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Did you know that life cannot exist without light? Nearly everything you use depends on light in some way. Light keeps us warm, powers many of the things we use, and helps our food grow. Without light, you would not be able to see the beautiful colors of a rainbow, a sunset, the moon in the night sky, or even find your way around.
Light is a form of energy that we can see when it is reflected off the surface of an object. Light travels in waves, similar to ocean waves, but light waves are much smaller. Different colors are determined by the size of the light wave. The light we see every day is called the visible spectrum, which makes up a tiny portion of the entire electromagnetic spectrum. In fact, less than one percent of light is visible to our human eyes, while there are many parts of the spectrum that we cannot see.
Ultraviolet light, or UV light, is light beyond violet and is just out of the visible range for human eyes. However, some animals and insects can see UV light. For example, it helps bees identify which parts of flowers to pollinate, assists reindeer in finding lichen (a type of food they eat), and makes scorpions glow under UV light. Forensic scientists use ultraviolet light, or black light, to help them see evidence that is otherwise not visible. When you see a black light used, you may notice that white things appear to glow purple, and some things on your skin and clothes become visible.
Light travels at a speed of 186,000 miles per second. It takes about eight minutes for light from the sun, which is 93 million miles away, to reach Earth. Light is believed to travel faster than anything else in the universe. If you could travel at the speed of light, in one second you would be able to orbit the Earth seven and a half times.
Light can travel through clear liquids, gases, and some solids, but not all. It can easily pass through objects like air, water, and glass. If light can pass through an object easily, the object is called transparent or see-through. We can see light streaming through a window but cannot see it coming through a wall because a wall is opaque. Light bounces off opaque objects, which include cement, wood, and metal.
Translucent objects, like stained glass windows, sunglasses, or wax paper, allow light to partially pass through them, causing light to bounce off and scatter in different directions. Even your hand is translucent; next time you’re out in the sun, hold your hand up to the light and watch how your fingers seem to glow because light partially passes through the skin.
Light usually travels in a straight line, but reflection occurs when light waves bounce off a surface. Without light reflection, we could not see things. For example, the light from a lamp helps a person see the words in a book; without the lamp, the words aren’t visible.
Have you ever wondered how the moon appears to give off light? The light you see on the moon actually comes from the sun. The sun’s light reflects off the moon’s surface, making it appear to glow. Refraction is another way that light waves can change direction. The curved lens of a magnifying glass spreads out light waves, making objects appear larger than they are. This can also happen when light travels through water or other transparent objects.
A triangular prism is an example of refraction. When light travels through the prism, it changes direction. Isaac Newton, a famous scientist from the 1600s, discovered that when sunlight hits a triangular glass prism, colors become visible: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. These colors are a result of refraction, and when sunlight is refracted through raindrops, we can see rainbows in the sky.
Even though light can move through certain things, it can also be blocked by opaque objects. Light can be blocked by a sun visor, an umbrella, or by the moon during an eclipse. When light is blocked, it creates a shadow of the blocked object, which is why you can see the shadow of your body on the sidewalk.
Light enables us to see and do many things. Light waves, or energy from the sun, can be converted into electricity, also known as solar power. The glasses you may wear are curved, which changes light waves and helps you see better. When light reflects off a mirror, you can see yourself. Plants grow through photosynthesis, using energy from sunlight to turn carbon dioxide from the air into food.
Light has incredible abilities; it even saved a famous astronaut’s life. Jim Lavelle piloted the Apollo 13 space shuttle and once flew over an ocean when his instruments stopped working. He thought he might have to eject into the ocean below. Suddenly, the lights in his cockpit went out, but he saw a bright green trail of lights in the ocean. That trail was algae that glowed after a large ship passed over it, creating bioluminescence. Jim Lavelle said the glowing lights created a path that led his plane back to the aircraft carrier and saved his life.
No doubt about it, we could not live without light.
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