Weather and Climate | What Is The Order Of Colors In A Rainbow?
What is the order of colors in a rainbow?
A rainbow is composed of the entire spectrum of colors of visible light, from the longest wavelength, red, to the shortest wavelength, violet. The order of colors in a rainbow is easiest to remember by the following mnemonic (a formula that helps one remember something): ROY G. BIV. R=red, O=orange, Y=yellow, G=green, B=blue, I = indigo, and V=violet. Red is at the top edge of the rainbow and violet is at the bottom edge, with the other colors in between.
Rainbows are created both by reflection and refraction (bending) of sunlight in raindrops. As sunlight enters a raindrop, it bends and it is separated into its constituent colors (the colors that comprise white light [ROY G. BIV]. Some of the light—that which travels at a "critical" angle—is reflected off the back of the raindrop. (A "critical" angle is the angle at which sunlight must strike the back of the raindrop, in...
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