In the water

Drei Bilder von Wasser mit Lichterscheinungen auf dem Grund.

Certainly you have already noticed light phenomena on the ground of the water while bathing or when staying at a clear stream?

To clarify how water can create such light phenomena, it is helpful to think about the reason why the light patterns on the ground are particularly noticeable in bathing waters. In a glass of water, in a puddle or in a calm lake these light stripes are hardly observable.
So what are the substantial differences between the waters?

Roll your mouse over the picture to change the water depth.

Das Sonnenlicht wird vom gewellten Wasser umgelenkt.

  1. On the one hand it is apparent that the light patterns are similar to the wave patterns on the surface of bathing waters. In contrast to an absolutely calm lake you can often see a curled wave pattern in case of a swimming pool.

  2. On the other hand the water in the pictures above has got a certain depth. A puddle, for example, is too flat for the creation of light phenomena.

Now pay attention to where the light is collected. Is it collected by the peak of the wave, which is curved towards the incident light, or the trough of a wave, which is curved away from the light incidence?




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