A perfect natural optical trap. Rainbows. It is hard to see those candy-colored phenomena and not feel like a little special and like something magical is happening. The mystical, intriguing science behind this illusion is quite stunning and fascinating. So you thought you knew enough about rainbows? I’m afraid you probably don’t… There’s more than what meets the eyes!
Please, prepare your noses for the ride.
Sunlight + Raindrops = Rainbows
Even though rainbows were prominently discussed in the myths and religions of so many cultures throughout history, no one had any idea what the heck they actually were until the 17th century.
Truly, In 1637 René Descartes discovered that rainbows were caused by light from the sun being split into different colors by rain —Gold star for Descartes.
Thus, if moisture and light accompany us, seeing a rainbow after it has rained, becomes a perfect reason for contemplation —And a great excuse for a flurry of Instagram photos. However, they can be seen not just in rain but also mist, spray, fog, and dew, whenever there are water drops in the air and light shining from behind at the right angle.
By the way, speaking about angles, did you know they are actually a full circle, like Saturn rings? In fact, we only see the half arc because of our perspective from the ground.
And if you wonder if there are rainbows in space: not exactly, because there’s no precipitation, nevertheless there is no reason why the other Planets should be without them. Let me ask, have you ever heard about a moonbow?
How Does the Rainbow Smell?
From the artist and aerospace engineer Zachary Howard to the synesthetes. What does the color red smell like? And blue? And white? In order to know how a person with synesthesia sniffs light, he created a gadget that allows us all to smell like teen spirit. Introducing the Synesthesia Mask.
Its operation is as follows: the gadget has three different dispensers of aromas, one for each primary color of light. The green smells like pine, the blue to lavender and the red, to grapefruit. To create the fragrance of the rest of the colors, the Mask makes a proportional mixture of “green”, “blue” and “red” as if it were the RGB pixels of an LED monitor.
The invention also has a sensor, which is responsible for detecting which color of the range you are touching and transmit a signal to the processor located in the bracelet connected to the mask to spray the selected fragrance through three servomotors that will open the test tubes with the aromas.
As Howard explains, the first thing he touched was a gray wall, which gave off a fetid and disgusting scent. What if we suddenly get through the colorful bow while wearing this mask on a walk? If just watching is awesome, I’m pretty sure the aroma must be indescribable and rich experience, not only for our senses, but our souls.
