Week 4: Colour

We are learning about the colours of light

So that we can explain how we are able to see colours in the visable spectrum

You will be able to mix the primary colours of light to make secondary colours.

Colour

White light is a mixture of many different colours, each with a different frequency. White light can be split up into a spectrum of these colours using a prism, a triangular block of glass or Perspex.

Light is refracted when it enters the prism, and each colour is refracted by a different amount. This means that the light leaving the prism is spread out into its different colours, a process called dispersion.

Coloured light

There are three primary colours in light: red, green and blue. Light in these colours can be added together to make the secondary colours magenta, cyan and yellow. All three primary colours add together to make white light.