How Rainbows Are Formed
What is the rainbow?
A multicoloured arc that we see when rays of light hit water droplets.
What happens when the light enters a water droplet?
It becomes refracted and reflected off the surface of the water droplet.
Does light travel more slowly through water or air?
It travels more slowly through water.
Does the rainbow exit in a specific spot in the sky?
No, it is an optical illusion.
Why do we see the light in different colours?
There is a difference in wave lengths and we see the light as a sequence of different colours.
What is the refraction and what is the reflection of light?
They are two phenomena we witness when sunlight pinballs in and out of water droplets.
How can you remember the colours red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet?
You can remember the acronym: Roy G. Biv.
