Bye re
what?
Birefringence is an optical
property of some materials, in this case peridot in a Brenham meteorite!
The light is split into
components based on polarization. If
the axis of one crystal is not aligned with another, you can get interference
effects similar to that of
viewing a thin section of mineral between crossed polarized light, i.e.,
colors!
The video shows a unique piece
of cut and polished Brenham with a such a peridot crystal. As the specimen rotates in the sunlight
colors are produced by
interference of the light. Pretty
unique!
OH!!!! I should mention, there is an
interesting optical illusion that occurs after watching the video. When the video stops, it will appear
like the picture is still
rotating! Look at a circular object
(clock) on the wall and it will look like it is moving.
Don’t go getting all
freaky on me! Maybe a little
reminder that you shouldn’t be so sure of what you see, hear or read.
distimpson copyright 2007
all rights reserved.