Science · 6 pages · 12 min
Why a double rainbow reverses the colors
The outer bow comes from a second reflection inside the drop, and that bounce flips the order.
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From the opening
A double rainbow reverses the colors because the outer bow is light that reflected twice inside the raindrop, not once. That extra reflection reverses the order in which the colors leave, so the outer bow has red on its inner edge. The opening covers why one bounce sets the inner bow, how a second bounce flips color, and what the darker band between them is.
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Inside
- Why one bounce sets the inner bow
- How a second bounce flips color
- What the darker band between them is
- Why the outer bow is fainter
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Descartes on one and two reflections inside a drop
- Dispersion that separates the primary and secondary bows