3 Types Of Energy That Make Up The Electromagnetic Spectrum

The electromagnetic em spectrum encompasses all wave frequencies including radio visible light ultraviolet and x rays.

3 types of energy that make up the electromagnetic spectrum.

You know more about the electromagnetic spectrum than you may think. The frequency f wavelength λ or photon energy e. Frequencies observed in astronomy range from 2 4 1023 hz 1 gev gamma rays down to the local plasma frequency of the ionized interstellar medium 1 khz. While at first some of the types of radiation listed in the table may seem unfamiliar you will get to know them better as your astronomy course continues.

Radio waves infrared rays visible light ultraviolet rays x rays and gamma rays are all types of electromagnetic radiation. These types include in order of increasing frequency radio waves microwaves infrared radiation visible light ultraviolet radiation x rays and gamma rays. The other types of em radiation that make up the electromagnetic spectrum are microwaves infrared light ultraviolet light x rays and gamma rays. You can return to this table as you learn more about the types.

Table 1 summarizes the bands of the electromagnetic spectrum and indicates the temperatures and typical astronomical objects that emit each kind of electromagnetic radiation.