The bouncing back by a surface of light, heat, or sound without absorbing it.

The bouncing back by a surface of light, heat, or sound without absorbing it.

• A. Absorption
• B. Refraction
• C. Scattering
• D. Reflection

Answer: (D)

Reflection is when waves hit a surface and bounce back instead of being absorbed. This is why you can see yourself in a mirror or hear an echo in a canyon—the sound waves bounce off the surface and return to you. When the surface is smooth, the bounce is uniform and you get a clear reflection, while on rough surfaces the waves scatter in many directions, giving a diffuse reflection. The energy isn’t absorbed by the surface in this process, which is what sets reflection apart from absorption. Refraction, on the other hand, is the bending of waves as they pass into a different material, like light bending when it enters water. Scattering refers to waves spreading out in many directions, often from a rough surface, which can be related to reflection but describes a different pattern of bounce than a simple mirror-like return. Radiant heat can also be reflected by shiny surfaces, just like light, instead of being absorbed.

Reflection is when waves hit a surface and bounce back instead of being absorbed. This is why you can see yourself in a mirror or hear an echo in a canyon—the sound waves bounce off the surface and return to you. When the surface is smooth, the bounce is uniform and you get a clear reflection, while on rough surfaces the waves scatter in many directions, giving a diffuse reflection.

The energy isn’t absorbed by the surface in this process, which is what sets reflection apart from absorption. Refraction, on the other hand, is the bending of waves as they pass into a different material, like light bending when it enters water. Scattering refers to waves spreading out in many directions, often from a rough surface, which can be related to reflection but describes a different pattern of bounce than a simple mirror-like return. Radiant heat can also be reflected by shiny surfaces, just like light, instead of being absorbed.