Rainbow facts for kids
A rainbow is a beautiful arc of colours you can see in the sky. It appears when the sun shines through tiny drops of rain or mist. The colours always follow the same order: red on the outside, then orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and finally violet on the inside. Sometimes, you might even spot a second, fainter rainbow outside the first one!
Rainbows form when sunlight enters water droplets. The light bends (this is called refraction), then splits into all its different colours (this is called dispersion), and finally bounces back (this is called reflection). Even though we usually see rainbows as an arc, they are actually full circles! From the ground, the bottom part is hidden, but if you're high up in an airplane, you might see a complete colourful circle. Rainbows often appear after storms and are seen as symbols of peace and hope in many cultures.
How Rainbows Appear
You can see a rainbow when there are water drops in the air and the sun is shining from behind you. The sun needs to be at a low angle in the sky for the best view. Rainbows always show up opposite the Sun. Imagine a line from the sun, through your head, and out the other side – the rainbow forms a circle around that point.
Even though sunlight looks white, it's actually made up of many different colours mixed together. When this white light passes through water droplets, the water acts like a tiny prism. It bends each colour of light at a slightly different angle. This bending and spreading of colours is what we call dispersion. Because each colour bends differently, the white light splits into the amazing spectrum of colours we see in a rainbow.
The most stunning rainbows often appear when:
- Half of the sky is still dark with clouds, but the rain is stopping.
- The sky directly above you is clear.
You can also often see mini-rainbows near waterfalls, where there's lots of mist in the air. Sometimes, you might even see parts of rainbows:
- At the edges of clouds that are lit from behind.
- As colourful bands in distant rain, even if it's not raining where you are.
You can even make your own rainbow! On a sunny day, try spraying a fine mist of water into the air with a garden hose. Stand with your back to the sun, and you might just create your own beautiful arc of colours!
The Seven Colours of a Rainbow
While a rainbow actually has a continuous blend of colours, we traditionally list seven main ones. Here are the colours you'll typically see, from the outside to the inside of the arc:
- Red
- Orange
- Yellow
- Green
- Blue
- Indigo
- Violet
Images for kids
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Image of the end of a rainbow at Jasper National Park
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Eruption of Castle Geyser, Yellowstone National Park, with a double rainbow seen in the mist
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A real rainbow (middle) compared to a true spectrum (top) and a computed rainbow (bottom).
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A diagram showing how light interacts with a raindrop to form a rainbow.
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A double rainbow with a dark band (Alexander's band) between the two bows.
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An example of a "twinned" primary rainbow.
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A rare view of a full circular rainbow from above.
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A photograph of a rainbow showing additional, fainter bands inside the main bow.
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A reflected rainbow, appearing in a body of water.
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A reflection rainbow (top) and a normal rainbow (bottom) at sunset.
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An unenhanced photo of a red (monochrome) rainbow.
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A fogbow and glory, similar to a rainbow but formed in fog.
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A circumhorizontal arc (bottom), below a circumscribed halo.
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A circumzenithal arc, a bright, colourful arc high in the sky.
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A first order rainbow from water (left) and a sugar solution (right).
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René Descartes's sketch showing how primary and secondary rainbows are formed.
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A demonstration experiment showing a rainbow using a round bottom flask.
See also
In Spanish: Arcoíris para niños
