The Astronomy Primer Series - 1a: What is light? | Page 2 | Astronomy | Guild Forums

Tyris Stark

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Posted: Wed May 02, 2007 12:11 pm

Emily`s_Gone_Mad

When I took Astronomy two years ago we had this discussion about light, and weather it was a wave or a particle.
..and then I couldn't understand anymore past that...as quantom mecanic's is like ....not something I comprehend. lol

It's not really either, and I'm not saying that because it's some quantum state of "both at once".
The particle and the wave are both convenient mathematical models for certain sets of situations, but neither one is actually a fully accurate description.

Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 3:01 am

Lol the speed of light doesnt belong to astronomy alone!!!

Light are Elektromagnetic waves that shows a wave particle duality.

Maxwell equations, yada yada ==> It is composed of a electric and a magnetic wave that make an angle of 90degrees.
Darn I can't tell much about this :p

arrow Emission spectra's
arrow Blackbody radiation
arrow The photoelectric effect smile

All interesting themes smile

and also a nice formula to think about.

m=(m0)/((1-(v^2)/(c^2))^1/2)

m=mass
m0=restmass (v=0)
v=speed
c=speed of light

It would mean that light has a restmass of zero else its mass would be infinite at the speed of light.

wahmbulance This doesnt make any sense without a equation editor. wahmbulance xd

Ndude

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VoijaRisa

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Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 2:13 pm

Ndude

Lol the speed of light doesnt belong to astronomy alone!!!

I never claimed it did. Merely pointed out that in astronomy, light is central to our studies since that's frequently all we have! So if you're going to do anything in astronomy, a good understanding of the nature and properties of light is essential.

Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 2:01 am

VoijaRisa

Ndude

Lol the speed of light doesnt belong to astronomy alone!!!

I never claimed it did. Merely pointed out that in astronomy, light is central to our studies since that's frequently all we have! So if you're going to do anything in astronomy, a good understanding of the nature and properties of light is essential.

Right, I'm sorry for the exclamation signs.

Ndude

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