Glossary term: Espectro visible
Description: Es la región del espectro electromagnético que es visible por el ojo humano. Comprende las longitudes de onda comprendidas entre 380 y 750 nanómetros. En este rango de luz, de menor a mayor longitud de onda, encontramos: luz violeta, añil, azul, verde, amarilla, naranja y roja, dispuestas de forma continua. Estos son los colores del arco iris que se producen de forma natural, cuándo la luz del Sol se descompone al refractarse dentro de pequeñas gotas de agua.
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Term and definition status: The original definition of this term in English have been approved by a research astronomer and a teacher The translation of this term and its definition is still awaiting approval
The OAE Multilingual Glossary is a project of the IAU Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE) in collaboration with the IAU Office of Astronomy Outreach (OAO). The terms and definitions were chosen, written and reviewed by a collective effort from the OAE, the OAE Centers and Nodes, the OAE National Astronomy Education Coordinators (NAECs) and other volunteers. You can find a full list of credits here. All glossary terms and their definitions are released under a Creative Commons CC BY-4.0 license and should be credited to "IAU OAE".
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In Other Languages
- Árabe: الطيف المرئي
- Alemán: Sichtbares Spektrum
- Inglés: Visible Spectrum
- Francés: Spectre visible
- Italiano: Spettro visibile
- Portugués de Brasil: Espectro visível
- Chino simplificado: 可见光谱
- Chino tradicional: 可見光譜
Related Media
The Pillars of Creation in comparison
Caption: The 'Pillars of Creation' are a renowned astronomical feature situated within the Eagle Nebula in the Serpens constellation. The illustration provides a direct comparison between images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), showcasing the pillars, which span several light years in diameter, in both visible light (also known as optical light) and infrared light. On the left are the pillars as seen by Hubble in visual light, taken in 2014. It displays dark pillars against an opaque background, with only a handful of visible stars. Conversely, the counterpart on the right is Webb’s near-infrared view published in 2022, penetrating the dust and revealing numerous stars of varying sizes.
Their distance from Earth is approximately 6,500 to 7,000 light years. Within these pillars, new stars are constantly forming, making them a subject of extensive study by astronomers. Composed mostly of cool molecular hydrogen and small amounts of interstellar dust, they are subject to erosion by the intense ultraviolet radiation emitted by nearby massive and newborn stars, a process known as photoevaporation.
Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI
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License: CC-BY-2.0 Creative Commons Atribución 2.0 Genérica icons
Solar absorption lines
Caption: This is a high resolution spectrum of light from our Sun showing visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The absorption lines are visible clearly as narrow black regions. The visualization shown here was created to mimic a so-called echelle spectrum, with wavelength increasing from left to right along each strip, and from bottom to top. Each of the 50 horizontal strips covers 6 nanometers, for a complete spectrum across the visible range from 400 to 700 nanometers.
This spectrum was created from a digital atlas observed with the Fourier Transform Spectrometer at the McMath-Pierce Solar Facility at the National Solar Observatory on Kitt Peak, near Tucson, Arizona (‘Solar Flux Atlas from 296 to 1300 nm" by Robert L. Kurucz, Ingemar Furenlid, James Brault, and Larry Testerman: National Solar Observatory Atlas No. 1, June 1984).
Note: NSO/Kitt Peak FTS data used here were produced by NSF/NOAO.
Credit: N.A. Sharp/KPNO/NOIRLab/NSO/NSF/AURA
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License: CC-BY-4.0 Creative Commons Reconocimiento 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0) icons
Light Dispersion by a Triangular Prism
Caption: This photograph shows a prism splitting a beam of white light into its component colors — a beautiful demonstration of optics, the branch of physics that studies how light behaves and interacts with materials. When white light enters the prism, different wavelengths (colors) bend by different amounts because of a process called refraction. This separation of colors produces a spectrum — similar to a rainbow — revealing that white light is actually made up of many colors combined going from blue, through green and yellow to red.
Understanding optics helps scientists and engineers design lenses, microscopes, telescopes, cameras, and many other tools that shape and control light for practical use. The way the prism disperses light into a spectrum is the same principle that makes rainbows form in the sky when sunlight passes through raindrops.
Credit: Kelvinsong
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License: CC0 CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Ofrecimiento al Dominio Público icons
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