How do electromagnetic waves from the sun vary in wavelength?

In summary, the sun emits electromagnetic waves in straight lines, similar to the light from lamps or FM/TV transmitters. These waves have varying wavelengths and are incoherent, meaning they are at different random phases. This can be seen in the solar spectrum graph.
  • #1
revv
55
9
How does the sun emit or radiate its electromagnetic waves?

https://imgur.com/odqclja

Is it like the first picture where it might be spaces in between the waves or more like the picture under it where the waves are uni formally (I think is the right word) with no space in between them? Or maybe not like those at all?
 
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  • #2
revv said:
How does the sun emit or radiate its electromagnetic waves?

the photons don't take wriggly ( cycling) paths between the Sun and the Earth
just like they don't for the light from your lamps to your eye, or from the FM /TV transmitter to your radio and TV

for all reasonable purposes, they travel in straight lines

Yes, there is an oscillation, but it is in each of the electric and magnetic field that make up the EM wave
 
  • #3
revv said:
Is it like the first picture where it might be spaces in between the waves or more like the picture under it where the waves are uni formally (I think is the right word) with no space in between them?
Accorsing to what you drew the thing that you are calling “spaces between the waves” is called “wavelength”. The EM waves from the sun have a variety of wavelengths, and they are incoherent meaning that they don’t form nice neat rings or lines like you drew, but they are at different random phases all over.

Here is a graph of the solar spectrum where the wavelength is the horizontal axis.

https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Solar_spectrum_en.svg
 

1. How do light waves travel?

Light waves travel as electromagnetic waves, meaning they are a combination of electric and magnetic fields that propagate through space. These waves can travel through a vacuum or through a medium, such as air or water.

2. What is the speed of light waves?

The speed of light waves is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second, or about 186,282 miles per second. This speed is constant and is the fastest speed at which anything in the universe can travel.

3. How do light waves interact with matter?

When light waves encounter matter, they can either be absorbed, reflected, or transmitted. The interactions between light waves and matter depend on the properties of both the light and the material it encounters.

4. How does the color of light waves affect their travel?

The color of light waves is determined by their wavelength, with shorter wavelengths appearing as blue or violet and longer wavelengths appearing as red or orange. Different colors of light can travel at slightly different speeds, but in a vacuum, they all travel at the same speed.

5. Can light waves travel forever?

In theory, light waves can travel forever through a vacuum without any loss of energy. However, in reality, they can be affected by various factors such as interstellar dust or gravitational fields, which can cause their path to bend or scatter.

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