Two plane mirrors are positioned at right angles to one another. A ray of light strikes one mirror at an angle of 30° to the normal. It then reflects toward the second mirror. What is the angle of reflection (from the normal) of the light ray OFF the second mirror?
I would show my work, but I have none. I am completely lost here...
=60
No worries! I'm here to help you step-by-step. Let's break down the problem and solve it together.
To find the angle of reflection from the second mirror, we can use the law of reflection. According to the law of reflection, the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.
In this case, the ray of light strikes the first mirror at an angle of 30° to the normal. The normal is a line perpendicular to the surface of the mirror.
Since the mirrors are positioned at right angles to one another, the reflection from the first mirror will be at 90° to the normal. This means the angle of incidence on the second mirror will also be 90°.
Now, we can apply the law of reflection again. Since the angle of incidence is 90°, the angle of reflection from the second mirror will also be 90°.
Therefore, the angle of reflection (from the normal) of the light ray off the second mirror is 90°.
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any further questions.
No worries! I'm here to help you. To understand the angle of reflection, let's break down the problem step by step.
Step 1: Start by understanding the concept of reflection. When a ray of light strikes a mirror, it reflects off the surface following the law of reflection, which states that the angle of incidence (the angle between the incident ray and the normal to the mirror) is equal to the angle of reflection (the angle between the reflected ray and the normal).
Step 2: In this scenario, the ray of light strikes the first mirror at an angle of 30° to the normal. Since the angle of incidence is 30°, the angle of reflection from the first mirror will also be 30°.
Step 3: The reflected ray from the first mirror now becomes the incident ray for the second mirror. This incident ray strikes the second mirror, and again, it will reflect off the surface according to the law of reflection.
Step 4: Since the second mirror is positioned at a right angle to the first mirror, the normal to the second mirror will be perpendicular to the normal of the first mirror. This means that the incident angle of the ray hitting the second mirror will be 90° - 30° = 60°, with respect to the normal of the second mirror.
Step 5: Applying the law of reflection again, the angle of reflection from the second mirror will be equal to the incident angle, which is 60°, from the normal of the second mirror.
So, the angle of reflection off the second mirror, with respect to the normal, will be 60°.
I hope this explanation clarifies the concept for you!