Worksheet 3.2 The Electromagnetic Spectrum

Use the following 2 images to answer questions below

The light produced by a red neon sign is due to the emission of light by excited neon atoms. Qualitatively describe the spectrum produced by passing light from a neon lamp through a prism.

How fast does light travel?

Rank the following types of electromagnetic radiation from lowest to highest Energy:

UV Microwave Red light Orange light Radio Waves X-rays

Rank the following types of electromagnetic radiation from lowest to highest wavelength:

UV Microwave Red light Orange light Radio Waves X-rays

You might think that microwave radiation would be harmful to humans because you know that putting food into a microwave oven heats it up. However, microwave radiation is all around us and is, in fact, used for cell phone communication. Explain how low-energy microwaves heat up food in a microwave oven.

Give an example of the energy carried by an electromagnetic wave.

Part of the light passing through the air is scattered in all directions by the molecules comprising the atmosphere. The wavelengths of visible light are larger than molecular sizes, and the scattering is strongest for wavelengths of light closest to sizes of molecules. (a) Which of the main colors of light is scattered the most?

(a) Which of the main colors of light is scattered the most?

(b) Explain why this would give the sky its familiar background color at midday.

What property of light corresponds to loudness in sound?

For the following questions please refer to Figure 2 - Line spectrum:

Why are they different?

Why are they not a continuous series of colors (ROYGBIV)?

How are light emission spectra used in the field of Astronomy?