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what is the theory behind light |
Light is part of the electromagnetic spectrum, the spectrum is the collection of all waves, which include visible light, Microwaves, radio waves ( AM, FM, SW ), X-Rays, and Gamma Rays. , held the theory that light was made up of tiny particlesLight can exhibit both a wave theory, and a particle theory at the same time. Much of the time, light behaves like a wave. Light waves are also called electromagnetic waves because they are made up of both electric (E) and magnetic (H) fields. Electromagnetic fields oscillate perpendicular to the direction of wave travel, and perpendicular to each other. Light waves are known as transverse waves as they oscillate in the direction traverse to the direction of wave travel.The speed of light in a vacuum is a universal constant, about 300,000 km/s or 186,000 miles per second. The exact speed of light is: 299,792.458 km/s It takes approximately 8.3 min for light from the sun the reach the earth ( 150,000,000 / 300,000 / 60 = 8.3 ) Taking the distance of the sun from Earth into account, which is 150,000,000 km, and the fact that light travels at 300,000 km/s, it shows in someway how fast light actually travels. With the use of the SI units for wavelength (l), frequency (¦) and speed of light (c), we can derive some simple equations relating to wavelength, frequency and speed of light: |