Rainbows are a majestic and awe-inspiring creation of nature that gives the sky an extraordinary look of luminescence and aura.
The Rainbow, if spoken from scientific knowledge, is actually a meteorological phenomenon. A rainbow is created due to the effect of reflection, refraction as well as dispersion of light which takes place on the water droplets in the atmosphere, resulting into the creation of a spectrum of colours and light in the sky.
Where are Rainbows actually formed?
Rainbows are usually formed in that portion of the sky which is exactly opposite to the portion where the sun exists.
What is the usual shape of a Rainbow?
The answer to the question lies in the name Rainbow. Rainbows are usually arc shaped, like a “bow”. Rainbows are formed of circular arcs of different colours and all these have the same common centre.
What are the colours in a Rainbow?
The Rainbow is usually shown to display 7 distinct colours:
- Violet
- Indigo
- Blue
- Green
- Yellow
- Orange
- Red
It is said to be VIBGYOR, the initials of each colour. This is what is traditionally known by all. But, in real scientific sense, a rainbow is made up of all the colours from red to violet and may have such colours that are even not known to all.
How are the colours of a Rainbow formed?
The colours actually occur due to certain reasons.
- The sunlight is made up of an innumerable collection of colours which appear to be white in our eyes on being mixed.
- These different colours from the sun get refracted in varied amounts when they are made to pass the earth’s atmosphere and the water vapour in it.
- Few colours get refracted and reflected to us when the light passes through the water droplets in the atmosphere.
- These colours are viewed at different angles and form the rainbow.
The primary rainbow shows red arc on the outer side and the violet arc on the inside, following the VIBGYOR rule in descending order. In a double rainbow, on the other hand , a second arc is visible outside the primary arc with the colour order reversed, showing red on the inside and violet outside.
Rainbow is visible only when there is sufficient amount of moisture in the air to refract and reflect the light of the sun, having the sun shining from the opposite direction. When an observer at a lower altitude sees the rainbow, he has the sun shining behind him and hence can see the clear rainbow in the sky.