sound/Light Waves

[Fedelerc]

As I'm sure you are aware the various pitches in sound are classified by numbers (440 vibrations per minute=an A) so the question is as light is also a wave and color is differences in those waves are there numbers to correspond to colors? thanks for your help

[Royston]

Yes, light (or EM radiation) has a colour and number, depending on it's frequency, and therefore it's wavelength. There are plenty of diagrams that show this, just google the subject.

 

However to give you a taste, the frequencies range from gamma rays that have a wavelength of around [math]10^{-12} m[/math] and smaller, and a frequency of [math]10^{21} Hz[/math] and greater, to radio waves that have frequencies ranging around [math]10^{5} Hz[/math].

 

These frequencies have a colour (it takes certain instruments to record these colours...our eyes being one of them), red light being a lower frequency, then progressing through the spectrum, to visible light (which is around yellow) to higher frequencies such as blue and violet. This is the basics, I can go into further detail if you wish.

Edited December 12, 2008 by Snail