| ||
| | |
| Understanding Color/Light and Color | Index | Home |
| ||
The color spectrum |
Light is a type of electromagnetic wave, just like the radio waves used in broadcasting and telecommunications. The characteristics of light change according to the length of the electromagnetic waves, ranging from radio waves, through visible light to gamma rays. The energy carried by waves which are approximately 400-700 nm (a nanometer equals one billionth of a meter and is the unit used to measure wavelengths of light) will stimulate the receptors in the human retina, producing color stimuli. The CIE (Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage: International Commission on Illumination) defines "visible light" as wavelengths from 380 nm to 780 nm. Humans perceive the light of the noonday sun as "white light," a mixture of visible light ranging from 400 nm (blue) to 700 nm (red). |
When white light passes through a prism, the light is diffracted and split into the seven colors of the rainbow. When this light strikes an object, part of it is reflected. It is the reflected light that we perceive as the color of an object. |
|
Compare:Understanding Color/Human color perception apparatus (optic nerve and brain) |
TOP