How does a reflective material such as a space blanket reflect heat as well as light? Like, I knew light was reflected off of mirror like surfaces but I can’t comprehend the heat part. Can someone please, explain this to me. How do space blankets work?
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One of the ways heat is transferred is by radiation. All objects emit a thermal spectrum, that peaks at a wavelength dependent on their temperature. You are glowing bright in infrared right now. Those blankets reflect that light back at the object (you) emitting it. Incidentally you can experience this by enjoying a warm sunny day. When you’re out in the sun you feel more warmth. This is partly because, well, the sun’s light. It’s the same principle. It’s just that the sun has a very high temperature. This is actually how we know the temperature of stars that are far away, we measure their thermal spectrum.
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