Question

What happens to the light incident on a colored surface?

1) It is absorbed
2) It is reflected
3) It is transmitted
4) All of the above

Answer 1

When light strikes a colored surface, it can be absorbed, reflected, or transmitted. Colored surfaces reflect their own color and absorb others; if transparent, they may transmit light as well. True color is determined by which wavelengths are reflected, not by the color of the incident light.

Step-by-step explanation:

When light encounters a colored surface, there are three possible interactions: it can be absorbed, reflected, or transmitted. A colored surface, such as a red piece of cloth, reflects light of its own color while absorbing other colors. The light that is not absorbed or reflected may be transmitted through the material, depending on its properties, such as thickness and transparency. A perfect example of absorbance is found in glow-in-the-dark plastics, where light energy is absorbed and later re-emitted as phosphorescence.

Each colored object displays its color based on how it interacts with different wavelengths of light. A pure blue object under white light will reflect blue light and absorb other colors, but under pure red light, the same blue object will appear black because it absorbs all the red light. This illustrates that the true color of an object is defined by the wavelengths of light it reflects and not by the light it is illuminated with.

Answer 2

4) All of the above

Colored objects reflect back only some of the wavelengths; the rest they absorb. For example, if white light shines on a red ball, the ball reflects back mostly red light, and so we see red. Most of the greens and blues that are part of white light are absorbed by the ball so we cannot see them.