Complete answer:
Electromagnetic waves are a combination of oscillating electric and magnetic fields. Electromagnetic waves are created by the vibrations between electric and magnetic fields. Electric and magnetic fields are perpendicular to each other and they are perpendicular to the direction of propagation.
When an electromagnetic wave travels through vacuum it comes out of the medium without any deflection. But when an electromagnetic wave travels through a medium or material it causes the electron and other particles present in the medium to move in the form of a wave. So, we can say that electromagnetic waves create vibrations in the matter. Hence, electromagnetic waves transfer energy to matter when there are fluctuations in the field.
Result- Hence from the above explanation we can clearly see how electromagnetic waves transfer energy to matter.
Note: Hence, from the above explanation it is clear what electromagnetic waves are and how they travel in different kinds of mediums and how these waves transfer their energy to the matter. Electromagnetic waves play a very important role in the field of electrodynamics. The light we get from the sun is electromagnetic. Electromagnetic waves have a particular spectrum. There are various bands or regions depending on the wavelength of light.
For \[{10^3}m\] wavelength we get radio waves.
For \[{10^{ - 2}}m\] wavelength we get micro waves.
For \[{10^{ - 5}}m\] wavelength we get an infrared region.
For \[{10^{ - 6}}m\] wavelength we get a visible region.
For \[{10^{ - 8}}m\] wavelength we get ultraviolet waves.
For \[{10^{ - 10}}m\] wavelength we get X-rays.
For \[{10^{ - 12}}m\] wavelength we get gamma rays.
The heat source for our planet is the sun. Energy from the sun is transferred through space and through the earth's atmosphere to the earth's surface. Since this energy warms the earth's surface and atmosphere, some of it is or becomes heat energy. There are three ways heat is transferred into and through the atmosphere:
- radiation
- conduction
- convection
Radiation
Most of the electromagnetic radiation that comes to the earth from the sun is in the form of visible light. Light is made of waves of different frequencies. The frequency is the number of instances that a repeated event occurs, over a set time. In electromagnetic radiation, the frequency is the number of times an electromagnetic wave moves past a point each second.
Our brains interpret these different frequencies into colors, including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. When the eye views all these different colors at the same time, it is interpreted as white. Waves from the sun which we cannot see are infrared, which have lower frequencies than red, and ultraviolet, which have higher frequencies than violet light.
Most of the solar radiation is absorbed by the atmosphere and much of what reaches the earth's surface is radiated back into the atmosphere to become heat energy. Dark colored objects such as asphalt absorb more of the radiant energy and warm faster that light colored objects. Dark objects also radiate their energy faster than lighter colored objects.
Conduction
This is due to transfer of heat energy from molecule to molecule or from atom to atom. Also, when objects are welded together, the metal becomes hot (the orange-red glow) by the transfer of heat from an arc. This is called conduction and is a very effective method of heat transfer in metals. However, air conducts heat poorly.
Convection
Convection is the transfer of heat energy in a fluid. This type of heating is most commonly seen in the kitchen when you see liquid boiling.
Air in the atmosphere acts as a fluid. The sun's radiation strikes the ground, thus warming the rocks. As the rock's temperature rises due to conduction, heat energy is released into the atmosphere, forming a bubble of air which is warmer than the surrounding air. This bubble of air rises into the atmosphere. As it rises, the bubble cools with the heat contained in the bubble moving into the atmosphere.
As the hot air mass rises, the air is replaced by the surrounding cooler, more dense air, what we feel as wind. These movements of air masses can be small in a certain region, such as local cumulus clouds, or large cycles in the troposphere, covering large sections of the earth. Convection currents are responsible for many weather patterns in the troposphere.