Topic5 facts
Unravel the mysteries of light. Learn about its speed, colors, and how it illuminates our universe, powering everything from photosynthesis to fiber optics.
Traveling at the speed of light (299,792,458 meters per second), photons from the Sun embark on a 150-million-kilometer journey across space. This means we always see the Sun as it was 8 minutes ago.
A rainbow is an optical illusion, not a physical object, formed by sunlight reflecting and refracting through water droplets. Its perceived location changes with your perspective, moving as you move.
Light travels fastest in a vacuum (about 299,792 kilometers per second). When it passes through denser mediums like water or glass, it interacts with the atoms, causing it to slow down temporarily.
In 2002, astronomers averaged the light from over 200,000 galaxies to determine the universe's overall hue. The resulting color is a beige-white shade, which they humorously named 'Cosmic Latte,' resembling a milky coffee or a pale cream.
When viewed from space, the Sun emits light across the entire visible spectrum, making it appear white. Its yellow appearance from Earth is due to atmospheric scattering, which removes blue light, making it seem warmer in color.
