Rainbows are formed by the light from the sun being refracted or bent as it enters the droplet, then reflected or bounced off the inside and then refracted again on its way out. This process splits the white light from the sun into the base colours that make it up. Just like the Prism pictured below.
The base colours of a rainbow are; Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet. An easy way to remember this is by using the initials of the colours and making a man's name with it, Roy G Biv.
ROYGBIV is a good way of being able to remember the order of the colours of the rainbow.
You actually have to be properly positioned to be able to see a rainbow. You have to be between the Sun and the water droplets. The other factor that also need to be in place is the position of the sun in the sky. The sun needs to be low enough in the sky to make a line from the sun to your eyes to the water droplets, this makes late afternoon or earl morning the best times for seeing rainbows.. So with the sun low in the sky, at your back and the water droplets in front of you, you should be able to see a rainbow.
If you are interested in finding more about rainbows check out the rainbow discovery kit by The Magic School Bus below.
You can also find more information at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow
No comments:
Post a Comment