ExploraTour - Looking at the World in a Different Light


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The Earth is surrounded by a sea of radiant energy. Most radiant energy that reaches our Earth comes from the Sun and other objects in the galaxy and the universe. Exploding stars and very hot objects give off a lot of light that is invisible to our eyes.

Normal stars radiate at least some of their energy as visible light. Our own Sun and the stars that we see give off a lot of visible light. Warm objects we see on Earth emit infrared radiation. Radio and microwaves come from very cold objects or from electrons moving in space.

Click on the image to see what types of light each of these objects emits.



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ExploraTour - Looking at the World in a Different Light

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ExploraTour - Looking at the World in a Different Light

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Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA