ORIGINAL POST:

Electromagnetic waves are a form of radiation that travel through the universe. Some are visible but others are not, however they help us live our everyday lives. There are many forms including gamma rays, X-rays, ultraviolet radiation, visible light, infrared radiation, and radio waves. This includes the use of light bulbs, cell phones, microwaves and more.

There was one that peaked my interest specifically, infrared waves. "In 1800, William Herschel conducted an experiment measuring the difference in temperature between the colors in the visible spectrum. He placed thermometers within each color of the visible spectrum. The results showed an increase in temperature from blue to red. When he noticed an even warmer temperature measurement just beyond the red end of the visible spectrum, Herschel had discovered infrared light!" (NASA 2016) We can sense some of infrared waves as heat and with some objects being hot they emit visible light- such as a fire does. The warmth we feel from the Sun's infrared light is called thermal energy. Thermal energy (or heat energy) is the energy that comes from any heated object. All objects in the universe with a temperature above absolute zero radiate thermal energy, even an ice cube. Thermal energy radiates in the form of infrared energy. (JPSS 2020)

There is a visible light spectrum that the human eye is able to perceive and it goes from red to violet or 700-380 nanometers. In a way the eyes are "tuned" to only see those ranges of colors, and anything beyond that wouldn't be visible to us.As far as wavelengths go red has the lonest wavelength and the lowest energy, but as you continue looking down the spectrum the wavelengths shorten and the energy increases. We ourselves along with animals also transmit infrared light that is not visible to the naked eye - our internal body heat. Over time humans have developed tools to aid us such as night vision goggles, telescopes, and infrared cameras to help us "see" the waves emitting from warm objects such as other humans and animals. However, species such as Mosquitoes, vampire bats, bed bugs, some snakes and beetles can use portions of the infrared spectrum for vision. While these animals use infrared vision to survive scientist use the tools that have been developed to gain a vast understanding of our environment such as earth-observing satellites study changes in land and sea surface temperatures, night-vision cameras monitor nocturnal animal behavior, telescopes detect cooler and more distant objects in the universe, and satellites monitor location and intensity of lava flows and forest fires. (A. Cowan 2022)

References for original post:

Science, N. (2016, August 16). Infrared waves. NASA. Retrieved April 12, 2023, from https://science.nasa.gov/ems/07_infraredwaves#:~:text=Infrared%20waves%2C%20or%20infrared%20light,change%20channels%20on%20your%20TV.

Cowan, A. M. (2022, September 27). Infrared vision. Education. Retrieved April 12, 2023, from https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/infrared-vision/

Satellite System , J. P. (2020, June). NOAA/NASA Joint Polar Satellite System Management Control Plan. Understanding Infrared Light. Retrieved April 12, 2023, from https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/s3/2022-03/JPSS-PLN-3107_v3.01610-Signed.pdf

MY POST:

In terms of the electromagnetic spectrum and it's uses, one that has been very beneficial in understanding the structure and motion of the world around us is radio waves. Primarily due to the fact that they have low frequencies and long wavelengths, this makes them the most suitable kind of EM waves to use, for the purpose of transmitting information over long distances.In correspondence with Lumen Learning's article on the Electromagnetic Spectrum, Radio waves (radio and tv) produce accelerating charges with applications ranging from communications to remote controls and in the "Life Science" sectors it is also used for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI's) (Lumen Learning, n.d). As stated, "There are many uses for radio waves, and so the category is divided into many subcategories, including microwaves and those electromagnetic waves used for AM and FM radio, cellular telephones, and TV (Lumen Learning, n.d)."Furthermore, according to the Center for Science Education on radio waves, "Various frequencies of radio waves are used for television and FM and AM radio broadcasts, military communications, mobile phones, ham radio, wireless computer networks, and numerous other communications applications. Of which, most radio waves pass freely through Earth's atmosphere (UCAR, 2018; Lumen Learning, n.d)." Other categorical applications for radio waves includes communication, radar, medical imaging, and radar astronomy ((Urone et al/, 2012, Chapter 24(24.3)). For radio waves, communication purposes encompass broadcasting for things such as the radio or the tv, along with communication in forms of satellites and cell phones (Sukhmander, 2021; Urone et al., 2012; Lumen Learning, n.d). Radar is most often used for things such as predicting/forecasting the weather, military surveillance (even in submarines), and air traffic control (Sukhmander, 2021; Urone et al., 2012).This is done because radar uses radio waves to detect/discover an object's directionality, location, and speed (Urone et al., 2012). As for medical imaging, MRI's use magnets along with radio waves to "produce images" of the inside of people's/animal's bodies, which allow medical professionals to determine, treat, and even treat certain medical issues (LTS, n.d; Urone et al., 2012, Chpt. 24). Last but not least, is radio astronomy, via radio telescopes. The way radio telescopes are used, is they detect radio waves emitted by (celestial/space) objects, which then allow for scientists like astronomers to research and study the motion and structure of "stars, galaxies, deep space activities, and other astronomical phenomena (LTS, n.d)." As for the kinds of instruments used to measure electromagnetic waves: wavemeters, detectors, receivers, antennas, as well as various other kinds of tools are used in the process of detecting and deciphering/interpreting information carried within, and through them. EM waves play important roles in everyday life, from how we see, sense, and experience the world around us.The processes and energies involved in EM waves and how they travel and transmit, is incredibly important to how we as humans go about our lives. If you took just one of these out of the equation, life would be very different.

REFERENCES

UCAR (2018).Radio Waves. Center for Science Education.https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/atmosphere/radio-waves.

Urone, P. P., Hinrichs, R., Sharma, M., & Dirks, K. (2012, June 21).College Physics. OpenStax. 2(22) (Chapter 24).https://openstax.org/details/books/college-physics-2e.

The Physics Classroom (n.d)Propagation of an Electromagnetic Wave. The Physics Classroom.https://www.physicsclassroom.com/mmedia/waves/em.cfm.

Let's Talk Science (n.d).Radio Waves: MRI, Radio Astronomy, SETI, etc....LTS.https://letstalkscience.ca/taxonomy/term/664.

Sukhmander, Singh, Ashish, Tyagi, et al., (2021, August 20).Physics of Absorption and Generation of Electromagnetic Radiation.https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/78176.DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.99037.

NASA (n.d).The Electromagnetic Spectrum. NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center.https://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/science/toolbox/emspectrum2.html.

(Primary Reading Resource) --> Lumen Learning (n.d). The Electromagnetic Spectrum. Lumen Learning: Physics: EM Waves.https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-physics/chapter/24-3-the-electromagnetic-spectrum/.

QUESTION ONE : In responding to the original post, aim to restate your understanding of how EM instrumentation works. Include an outside citation in at least one of your responses.