Sun-splashed Spider Web and Diffraction Colors
April 12, 2019
Photographer: Juan Manuel Pérez Rayego
Summary Authors: Juan Manuel Pérez Rayego; Jim Foster
The sun-splashed spider web featured above was observed nearby my home in Merida, Spain. The out of focus appearance is due to breezes that shook the silken web strands as I snapped the camera shutter. Diffraction of sunlight by the thin threads, which are just the right diameter to deflect light is responsible for the showy coloration, and variation in color intensity is due to minute differences in the thickness of the threads. Photo taken mid-April 2011.