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Light: Shadows and Reflections

Does it make its own light?

Moonlight lights up a village at night. Where does it come from?

A star, a candle flame and a firefly (a glowing insect) make their own light.
Step 1 of 3
  1. A star, a candle flame and a firefly (a glowing insect) make their own light.
  2. Sunlight falls on the Moon, Jupiter (a planet) and a coin. They shine.
  3. Switch the sunlight off. The Moon, Jupiter and the coin go dark.

The Moon does not make light. It bounces sunlight back.

The new words

  • Luminous — makes its own light. The Sun, a star, a candle flame and a firefly are luminous.
  • Non-luminous — does not make light. The Moon is non-luminous.

The rule

A source is a thing that gives out light.

A luminous object makes its own light. A non-luminous object does not. We see it when light from another source bounces off it.

Moonlight is mostly sunlight, bounced off the Moon.

Now try it. Tap what will still shine. Then switch the sunlight off.

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This track

  1. 0 Start here
  2. 1 Light travels in straight lines
  3. 2 A shadow is a place light did not reach
  4. 3 How big, and what shape
  5. 4 A hole makes a picture
  6. 5 Light bounces off a smooth surface
  7. 6 What you see in a mirror
  8. 7 Why a wall shows you nothing
  9. 8 Checkpoint: straight lines, shadows and mirrors
  10. 9 Does it make its own light?
  11. 10 How much light gets through?
  12. 11 A simple periscope uses two mirrors
  13. 12 The big picture
  14. 13 Track quiz

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