When you're in a pool and you look up at the surface of the water, why is it like a mirror.....?

Question

....and you can't see through it? And bubbles under water look silver too. Just wondering why? Thanks. Leave a star if you found this interesting x

Answer 1

Because the surface of the water relects your image back to your eyes.

Answer 2

1 is simple because  water is a transperent medium it looks like a mirror

2. Bubbles look silver in colour because they are full of water if you will see a bubble at the surface of the water you will notice that it is not silver in colour

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Answer 3

It's called total internal reflection.

The interesting thing is that if you go underwater and look up, you see a bright circle where light can come in from above.  Outside of the circle, you see light that is reflected from below, so it's darker.

The angle between vertical and the line of your eye and the edge of the circle is the critical angle of water--about 48.6 degrees.  So if you are looking up, you see through the water.  If you are looking more horizontally, the surface looks like a mirror (assuming the surface is perfectly smooth).

Answer 4

its to do with refraction as the light passes into air, as light passes from a medium in which it travels slowly(optically dense), such as water, into one in which it travels more quickly, such as air, the light "bends" towards the more dense medium, and the amount of bending is proportional to the relative velocities. but when the light is bent beyond 90 degrees it hasn't really left the water, so what is it to do? the only thing it can do is reflect, causing the surface to look like a mirror, the same thing happens with the bubbles. next time you go swimming note that the reflection only happens at an angle, when you look straight up you can actually see out of the pool

Answer 5

Look up "Total internal reflection".  It's to do with the angle you are looking at and the properties of the media: you were bang on track with "looks like a mirror" & "silver" that's exactly what TIR is, a mirror

Answer 6

I didnt realise it did im gunna have a look next time I go swimming :)

Answer 7

Just the mysterious way water works =)

I love swimming =D

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Answer 8

Try looking at the pages around here:

http://www.gcse.com/waves/tir.htm