Final answer:
Most of the light that hits a window is transmitted, allowing us to see through the glass. Some light is also reflected, evident by our ability to see reflections on the window's surface. A smaller proportion of light is absorbed by the window, which can slightly increase the window's temperature.
Step-by-step explanation:
When light encounters a window, various interactions occur. The majority of light is typically transmitted through a window because the material is designed to be transparent to visible light. However, a portion of the light can also be reflected, which is why we can see reflections in windows. Some of the light might be absorbed by the material of the window, which can lead to a small amount of heating of the glass, but this is typically a much smaller effect compared to transmission and reflection.
The behaviors of light like reflection, transmission, and absorption are essential to understanding how light interacts with different mediums. Since windows are meant to allow light to pass through, they have high transmittance, low absorption, and variable reflectance depending on the angle of incoming light and the properties of the glass.