Reflective property of a parabola

Demonstrates the focal point of a parabola. If light is entering a parabolic mirror, it will pass through the focus. If a light source is placed at the focus, the beams of light will be parallel. This is based on the law of reflection which states that the angle of reflection is equal to the angle of incidence. Since the surface is curved, these angles are measured using the tangent line.

 

Joseph Manthey

 
Resource Type
Activity
Tags
parabola 
Target Group (Age)
16 – 18
Language
English
 
 
 
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