Light can pass easily through water and through air, but light will reflect from the surface of a lake. What does this tell you about the speed of light in air and in water?
Light can pass easily through water and through air, but light will reflect from the surface of a lake. What does this tell you about the speed of light in air and in water?
Light can pass easily through water and through air, but light will reflect from the surface of a lake. What does this tell you about the speed of light in air and in water?
Definition Definition Rate at which light travels, measured in a vacuum. The speed of light is a universal physical constant used in many areas of physics, most commonly denoted by the letter c . The value of the speed of light c = 299,792,458 m/s, but for most of the calculations, the value of the speed of light is approximated as c = 3 x 10 8 m/s.
Expert Solution & Answer
To determine
To explain: Speed of light in air and water.
Explanation of Solution
As light passes from air to water, it changes from one medium to another. In terms of refractive index, water is denser than air.
Hence, the wave speed of light decreases in water. Therefore, some light waves undergo refraction, while some of them reflect back from the plane of water.
Conclusion:
Hence, the speed of light in air and water is described.
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Checkpoint 4
The figure shows four orientations of an electric di-
pole in an external electric field. Rank the orienta-
tions according to (a) the magnitude of the torque
on the dipole and (b) the potential energy of the di-
pole, greatest first.
(1)
(2)
E
(4)
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