Physics
Draw a ray diagram to show the appearance of a stick partially immersed in water. Explain your answer.
Answer
The above figure shows a stick placed obliquely in water. The portion OP of the stick under water when seen from air appears to be shortened and raised up as OP'. This is due to refraction of light from water to air.
The rays of light coming from tip P of the stick when pass from water to air, bend away from the normal and appear to be coming from point P' which is the virtual image of the point P.
Thus, the part PO of the stick appears to be P'O.
Hence, the immersed part of the stick appears to be raised and therefore, bent at the point O at the surface of water and the stick XOP appears as XOP'.
Related Questions
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(a) What property of light is responsible for this observation? Illustrate your answer with the help of a ray diagram.
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(ii) Name the phenomenon which accounts for the above-started observation.
(iii) Complete the diagram showing how the student’s eye sees the pencil through water.