Quarky Explores Berlin
Why does a shiny ball make a glowing cross?
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The story
Sun hits the round steel sphere of Berlin's TV Tower and a bright cross appears on it. A curved mirror reflects light from a whole ring of angles into narrow bright lines, and Quarky learns the shape of a surface decides what its reflection looks like.
What you'll learn
- Reflection means light bouncing off a surface at a predictable angle.
- Curved shiny surfaces concentrate reflected light into bright shapes.
- People nicknamed the reflection the Pope's Revenge in a divided Berlin.
- Quarky takeaway: the shape of a mirror is the shape of the light it sends back.
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