LIGHT AND SHADOW
LIGHT
• What is light?
– Light is the electromagnetic radiation which is visible to the
human eye.
– It is a form of energy that can travel freely across space
• We see part of the electromagnetic wave as light and we feel part
of it as warmth
– Light travels very fast at 299 792 458 m/s
– Light travels as a wave and as particles
– It comes from the sun, fire, etc.
– The sun is the most important source of heat and light and
life on earth is dependent on the sun.
Light sources
Not sources of light (only reflect light)
Moon Mirror
Three types of materials
1. Transparent materials let light pass
through them in straight lines
➢ Glass
➢ Water
➢ Clean air
➢ Crystal
2. Translucent materials let some light pass
through them
➢ Tissue paper
➢ Frosted glass
3. Opaque do not let any light pass through.
➢ Wood
Three types of materials
Characteristics of light
• Light travels in a straight line
• Light can be reflected (reflection)
• Light can be refracted/bent (refraction)
• Light can be dispersed (dispersion)
refraction
reflection
Reflection and
dispersion
refraction
SHADOW FORMATION
• A shadow is made when an object blocks light.
Light travels in straight line, so if it gets blocked there must be a
shadow formed.
• The object must be opaque or translucent to make a shadow.
– A shadow represents an absence of light
• A transparent object will not make any shadow as it lets light
pass through.
• Three things are needed to form a shadow:
– Light
– An opaque object
– A screen/surface
EXPERIMENT
AIM: To find the best material to cast a shadow.
APPARATUS:
1. Transparent plastic 2. Tissue paper 5. Torch/flashlight
3. Black paper 4. White paper
Procedures:
✓ Draw the shapes onto 1 piece transparent plastic (A) and two pieces of paper (B =
tissue paper, C = black paper) with the similar shape and size.
✓ Put the cut out shapes one by one under the light.
✓ Shine a strong onto white surface.
QUESTIONS
➢ Draw the different shades from your experiment.
➢ Which object produces the darkest shadow?
➢ Tell your analysis why it could happen?
THANK YOU!
HOW SHADOWS CHANGE
• If an object is moved closer to the light source,
the shadow gets bigger but when it’s moved
away from the source the shadow gets smaller.
HOW SHADOWS CHANGE
• Position of light
source
– When the light falls at
90 degrees
perpendicular to the
object, the shadows
are shorter.
– When the angle
between a light beam
and the object
increases, then the
shadow gets longer.
HOW SHADOWS CHANGE
• Source of light
– Shadows are sharp when the light source is bright
and blurred when the light source is not bright
Sun position and length of the shadow
• The length of the
shadow is determined
by the position of the
sun in the sky:
– When the sun is low on
the horizon in the
morning and evening,
long shadows are
formed.
– During mid-day, when
the sun is high in the sky,
the shadows are much
shorter.
HEATING EFFECT OF SUNLIGHT ON
OBJECTS OF DIFFERENT COLOURS
HEATING EFFECT OF SUNLIGHT ON
OBJECTS OF DIFFERENT COLOURS
• Darker colours absorb more sunlight than
lighter colours, which is why darker colours
get warmer more quickly in the sunlight
than lighter colours.
– For example, think about a black shirt.
• Black absorbs all the wavelengths of light.
• Once those wavelengths are absorbed, they
are converted into other types of energy.
• This usually means that the light is changed
into heat.
• Some of that newly created heat will be
released back into the air, but most of it will
be emitted directly to your body.
• The result is a feeling of being hotter.
HEATING EFFECT OF SUNLIGHT ON
OBJECTS OF DIFFERENT COLOURS
• The lighter colours reflect more of the
sun's radiant energy, so they remain cooler
to touch in the sunlight.
– A white shirt is the better option to wear
on a hot day because it will do the exact
opposite of a black shirt.
– The white shirt will not absorb any of the
light wavelengths.
– That leaves the shirt with nothing to
convert into heat.
– The white shirt will then feel cooler
against your body.
• However, don’t expect to feel a chill when
wearing white, factors such as humidity and
wind plays a role
USES OF HEAT AND LIGHT ENERGY
• There are two ways to use sunlight to make useful forms of
energy.
– One is to use photovoltaic panels to make electricity.
– The other, simpler approach is to convert sunlight to heat
for such things as warming a building, making hot water,
cooking, or producing "steam" that can power an electrical
generator.
USES OF HEAT AND LIGHT ENERGY
• Solar heating and cooking
• Observe the type of surfaces
used to absorb and reflect
heat and light on the two
technologies shown
LEARNING CHECK
• Arrange the given shadows of a tree formed
on different times in correct order starting
from morning to evening.
LEARNING CHECK: TRUE/FALSE
1. Shadows can change shape True
2. We can’t see any shadows at night False
3. Shade and shadow means the same thing False
4. Something must block light to make a shadow False
5. A shadow can be the same size as the object
making it True
6. When the sun is overhead, shadows are long
and skinny False
CONCLUSION
• Only opaque objects can form shadows.
• Shadows will always be formed on the opposite side
of the light source.
• Shadow is always black in colour if we use white light.
• A screen is needed for a shadow to form.
• The shadow of an object is erect i.e., same side up as
the object.
• The size of the shadow depends upon the size of the
object, the distance between light source and object
and the distance between object and the screen.
