Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2026

DOI

10.1119/5.0263623

Publication Title

The Physics Teacher

Volume

64

Issue

1

Pages

A81-A82

Abstract

The article focuses on the optical phenomena observed in glass globes, specifically the multiple reflections of sunlight in both hollow and solid glass spheres. The author describes an experiment conducted in Norfolk, Virginia, where different ray paths of sunlight were sketched as they exited a hollow glass globe, illustrating the effects of reflection. The article also includes mathematical equations to analyze the deviation angles of rays after multiple internal reflections in both hollow and solid spheres, concluding that these angles differ unless the refractive index of the solid sphere is equal to one. The observations highlight the complexities of light behavior in different glass structures.

Rights

© Copyright 2026 AIP Publishing LLC

This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and AIP Publishing. This article appeared in 

Adam, J. (2026). Move over, Tatooine: Solutions for Fermi questions, January 2026. The Physics Teacher, 64(1), A81-A82. 

and may be found at https://doi.org/10.1119/5.0263623.

Original Publication Citation

Adam, J. (2026). Move over, Tatooine: Solutions for Fermi questions, January 2026. The Physics Teacher, 64(1), A81-A82. https://doi.org/10.1119/5.0263623

ORCID

0000-0001-5537-2889 (Adam)

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