For example, I’m sitting on my front porch which overlooks the town. Miles away I can see streetlights, signs, etc. How does the source project light to my location, yet doesn’t illuminate my location?
Holy moly friends, thanks for the awards and stuff. I didn’t think this question would spark so much interest, lol. I am thoroughly grateful for all your replies.
In: Physics
“Illumination” in your definition means that you’ll be able to “see” an object in that light. But objects absorb energy and disperses the light even further. So while your eyes can pick up the light from the source, it might not pick up light reflected off nearby objects.
You can test this effect with a simple thought experiment. Let’s suppose you are in a stadium with only one light source, we then turn the light down such that you cannot see your surroundings but only that source of light. Turn around, and hold up a mirror. That mirror is “illuminated” because it reflects almost all of the energy that hits it. In that sense, if you replace your nearby grass with reflective materials you will see that the light from the stadium does infect illuminate your surroundings.
Also the “inverse square law” answer is a red herring, while it correctly describes why the “divergence” of light increases, the intensity of light does not decrease simply with distance.
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