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How do upside down mirrors work? |
Before talking about upside down mirrors, we should really reflect on how regular mirrors work.
Mirrors are smooth surfaces that reflect light. Light is a type of energy, and when that energy hits our eyes, it lets us see things. The mirrors in our bathrooms are usually nice and flat. All the light that hits the mirror is reflected the same way without changing. If you stand in front of a flat mirror, you see yourself the same size and shape that you actually are!
When we change the shape of the mirror, all sorts of strange things can happen! If you’ve ever been to a funhouse, you’ve probably seen this. Some mirrors can make you look shorter and wider. Others can make you look taller and skinnier! You’re not really changing shape . The mirrors’ strange curved and wavy shapes are causing an illusion. The light that bounces off them goes in different directions, and that plays tricks on our eyes!
An upside down mirror is curved inward. When light hits the top of it, it reflects downward. When light hits the bottom of it, it reflects upward. The image is actually flipped because the light is reflected to the opposite place of where it came from. It looks like the world is upside down!
The Upside Down You!
Upside down mirrors are normally hard to find, but there’s something in your home that will do the same thing. It’s a spoon! If you have a shiny metal spoon, take a look at your reflection in it. The scooping part of the spoon is curved inward, just like an upside down mirror. All of the sudden, you see yourself upside down! Think about what the shape of the spoon is doing to the light that reflects off it.
Now turn the spoon over, and look at your reflection on the back of it. How has the image changed? What do you think the shape of the spoon had to do with it?