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How does a rainbow produce light?

Updated: 5/27/2024
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Wiki User

13y ago

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Rainbows do not 'produce' light. Classic rainbows appear whenever the sun is visible and there are small raindrops in the sky in the direction opposite the sun.

Imagine a ray from the sun hitting a drop that is directly above the spot that is opposite the sun. The sun's ray will enter the drop and, if the angle is right, bounce off the back of the drop and come out deflected by a characteristic angle, the "rainbow angle". If the drop is the right number of degrees above the antisolar point, the ray will will bounce off the back of drop and travel to your eye. You will thus see reflected sunlight that appears to be coming from a point that is above the the antisolar point by an angle equal to the rainbow angle.

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13y ago
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1mo ago

A rainbow is produced by the refraction and reflection of sunlight through water droplets in the air. Sunlight is bent, or refracted, as it enters the water droplet and then reflects off the inside surface before exiting and dispersing into its various colors due to their different wavelengths.

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Q: How does a rainbow produce light?
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Related questions

Is rainbow a source of light?

No, a rainbow does not produce light, it is an effect of light being bent (refracted). The source of the light seen in a rainbow is the Sun.


Is rainbow source of light?

No, a rainbow does not produce light, it is an effect of light being bent (refracted). The source of the light seen in a rainbow is the Sun.


What color of light are the colors of the rainbow combined?

Mixing the light colours of the rainbow will produce white light (i.e. daylight).


Why does a prism produce a rainbow when whit light passes through it?

Because your mum didnt plan you to be born.


What happen to rainbow colour if they get mixed?

Since every possible color is somewhere in the rainbow, it must follow that when light with two or more of the rainbow's colors mix, the mix may produce another color that's somewhere else in the rainbow.


What color of the rainbow reflects the most light?

Yellow reflects the most light in the visible spectrum, making it the brightest color of the rainbow.


How rainbow appears in the sky?

Apparently, a rainbow appears in the sky because both, rain and sun, mix together and produce light and colours. Some people belive that at the end of a rainbow is gold. But how does the gold just appear suddenly?


What happens when light is shone at a prism?

It splits into the colours that make it up, so white light makes a rainbow, and different colours produce different results.


What is a rainbow and how are they formed?

A rainbow is a natural phenomenon that occurs when sunlight is refracted, reflected, and dispersed within water droplets in the atmosphere. This process separates sunlight into its component colors, creating the distinct arc of colors that we see in the sky.


What will happen if the slit is illuminated with white light?

If a slit is illuminated with white light, the light will be separated into its component colors due to diffraction, producing a rainbow pattern known as a spectrum due to the different wavelengths of light being diffracted at different angles. This effect is caused by the wave nature of light.


Does a rainbow produce light?

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How is a rainbow related to light?

Rainbow is formed when light from a distant source falls on a collection of water drops such as in rain, spray, or fog.This is how rainbow related to light.