Why do black surfaces absorb majority of the Infrared radiation incident on it, why not white surfaces?

Question

Why do black surfaces absorb majority of the Infrared radiation incident on it, why not white surfaces?

In: Physics

Answer 1

The way you wrote about it is conceptually back to front. What you say is correct but it might be clearer to understand that “white” is DEFINED as a color that reflects visible light while “black” is DEFINED as that which absorbs all frequencies.

The property of absorption doesn’t come from the property of “color”. The property of color comes from the property of absorption. So there is, in a sense, no “why” to the question.