Electromagnetic Spectrum

1. What is it?

1.1. Electromagnetic radiation is generally described as a self-propagating wave in space with electric and magnetic components. These components oscillate at right angles to each other and to the direction of propagation, and are in phase with each other.

1.1.1. electromagnetic radiation can be described in terms of a stream of photons, which are massless particles each traveling in a wave-like pattern and moving at the speed of light. Each photon contains a certain amount (or bundle) of energy, and all electromagnetic radiation consists of these photons.

2. Radio

2.1. yes, this is the same kind of energy that radio stations emit into the air for your boom box to capture and turn into your favorite Mozart, Madonna, or Coolio tunes. But radio waves are also emitted by other things ... such as stars and gases in space. You may not be able to dance to what these objects emit, but you can use it to learn what they are made of.

2.1.1. Radio

2.1.2. Television

2.1.3. Telephone

3. Microwaves

3.1. they will cook your popcorn in just a few minutes! In space, microwaves are used by astronomers to learn about the structure of nearby galaxies, including our own Milky Way!

3.1.1. Oven

3.1.2. Satellite Television

4. Visible

4.1. yes, this is the part that our eyes see. Visible radiation is emitted by everything from fireflies to light bulbs to stars ... also by fast-moving particles hitting other particles.

4.1.1. Optic Fibre

4.1.2. Red

4.1.3. Orange

4.1.4. yellow

4.1.5. green

4.1.6. blue

4.1.7. indigo

5. Ultraviolet

5.1. we know that the Sun is a source of ultraviolet (or UV) radiation, because it is the UV rays that cause our skin to burn! Stars and other "hot" objects in space emit UV radiation.

5.1.1. Causes sunburns

5.1.2. Sterilisation

5.1.3. Sunbeds

6. X-rays

6.1. your doctor uses them to look at your bones and your dentist to look at your teeth. Hot gases in the Universe also emit X-rays .

6.1.1. X-ray scanner- scans bodies

7. Gamma-rays

7.1. radioactive materials (some natural and others made by man in things like nuclear power plants) can emit gamma-rays. Big particle accelerators that scientists use to help them understand what matter is made of can sometimes generate gamma-rays. But the biggest gamma-ray generator of all is the Universe! It makes gamma radiation in all kinds of ways.

7.1.1. Kills cancerous cells