What is a rainbow?

A rainbow is an arc-like, multi-coloured structure seen in the sky during particular atmospheric conditions. Rainbow is made up of seven colours, from inside to outside, they are violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red, also known as VIBGYOR.

How is a rainbow formed?

How is a rainbow formed

A rainbow is formed when sunlight passes from water droplets (the denser material) to air and as it is reflected, the sunlight splits up into its component wavelengths, thus forming the seven colors of the rainbow. Click here for more details.

Why is a rainbow made up of seven colours?

  • Light travels in the form of waves.
  • Each wave has different wavelengths.
  • Some waves have a short wavelength as compared to others, whereas some have a longer wavelength.
  • Normally, light with different wavelengths appears as different coloured light to us.
  • The natural light that we see is actually made of light of all the seven different wavelengths of the rainbow.
  • When sunlight passes through a raindrop, it slows down a little bit as it moves from air to the denser material, water. As the light passes through the water droplet, it is reflected and therefore separated into each of its component colours or wavelengths.
  • The reason for the separation of sunlight into seven colours is that the lights of different wavelengths are bent by the water droplet to different degrees and due to this variation, each colour is separated distinctly. As a result, we can see seven distinct colours in a rainbow.

What are the types of rainbows?

  • Primary Rainbow- This is the most common type of rainbow. Occurs because of the bending of light from a raindrop.
  • Secondary Bow or Double Bow – Sometimes, another faint rainbow is visible just above the actual rainbow. This fainter rainbow is called a Double Bow. It occurs when there is double bending of light inside a raindrop due to which the second rainbow is reflected at a different angle than the first/primary rainbow. Secondary rainbows are fainter and the colours are in reverse order i.e., red is at the bottom and violet is at the top.
  1. Everyone has a different view of a rainbow based on their own mind and the degree of watching.
  2. Rainbows are actually circular with no end.
  3. Rainbows are sometimes used to symbolize peace.

Related Questions:

  1. What is the difference between a primary and a secondary rainbow?
  2. Why are rainbows formed?
  3. What are the constituent colours of sunlight?

True or False:

  1. A rainbow is triangular in shape.
  2. Rainbow is seen in seawater.
  3. The rainbow has 13 colours.
  4. Double Rainbow occurs when there is a double bending of light in a raindrop.
  5. Primary Bow has colours in the normal pattern of VIBGYOR from outside to inside.

Objective Quiz:

  1. A rainbow is  ________ structure.
    1. Arc-like.
    2. Triangle-like.
    3. Square-like.
    4. None of the above.
  2. A rainbow occurs because of ________ through a raindrop.
    1. Bending of a light wave.
    2. Straight passing of the light wave.
    3. No passing of light wave.
    4. Blocking of a light wave.
  3. There is a total of _________ colors present in the rainbow.
    1. One.
    2. Five.
    3. Seve.
    4. Nine.
  4. Each wave of light has __________.
    1. Different wavelength.
    2. Same wavelength.
    3. Both 1) and 2).
    4. None of the above.
  5. The outermost colour of a Rainbow is _______.
    1. Violet.
    2. Indigo.
    3. Orange.
    4. Red.

Additional MCQs

1. What natural element is essential for the creation of a rainbow?

A) Sand particles
B) Water droplets
C) Ice crystals
D) Leaves

 

2. Which phenomenon is NOT involved in the formation of a rainbow?

A) Dispersion
B) Reflection
C) Refraction
D) Total internal reflection

 

3. Rainbows are a result of light interacting with what?

A) Clouds
B) Water droplets
C) Glass prisms
D) Mirrors

 

4. Which of the following is NOT a process that contributes to forming a rainbow?

A) Diffraction
B) Reflection
C) Refraction
D) Dispersion

Rainbow Activities for Kids:

Physics
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