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NASA Space Place: Explore the Electromagnetic Spectrum Interactive

This illustration shows the ball of a red dwarf star. It is mottled with dark spots and finger-like filamentary outbursts. In front is a much smaller black circle representing the silhouette of a planet passing in front of the star. The red dwarf's furious activity is causing the planet's atmosphere to escape into space. This appears as wispy blue filaments along the planet's straight horizontal orbital path. The star is colored a rich red because it is cooler than our Sun.
This artist's illustration shows a planet (dark silhouette) passing in front of the red dwarf star AU Microscopii. The planet is so close to the eruptive star a ferocious blast of stellar wind and blistering ultraviolet radiation is heating the planet's hydrogen atmosphere, causing it to escape into space. Four times Earth's diameter, the planet is slowly evaporating its atmosphere, which stretches out linearly along its orbital path. This process may eventually leave behind a rocky core. The illustration is based on measurements made by the Hubble Space Telescope.
Levels
  • Intermediate (6-8)
  • Introductory (K-5)
Material Type
  • Article/Informative Text
Heliophysics Topics
  • Electromagnetic Spectrum
  • Energy
  • Light
  • Sun
Related Missions
  • James Webb Space Telescope (Astro)
Material Cost per Learner Free
Language English

This interactive resource explores the "Magic Windows" of the electromagnetic spectrum across seven different wave types: radio waves, microwaves, infrared waves, visible light, ultraviolet waves, x-rays, and gamma rays. Students discover how each region of the spectrum reveals different information about the universe, like looking through different "magic windows." The resource demonstrates how astronomers use various wavelengths to study cosmic objects and phenomena that would be invisible in visible light alone.

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