Mirage is an illustration of
only dispersion of light.
only reflection of light.
only total internal reflection of light.
both refraction and total internal reflection of light.
Answer is Right!
Answer is Wrong!
This question was previously asked in
UPSC NDA-1 – 2021
Mirages are atmospheric optical illusions caused by the bending of light (refraction) as it passes through layers of air with different temperatures and thus different refractive indices. Near hot surfaces (like roads or sand in deserts), the air is hotter and less dense than the air above, meaning its refractive index is lower. Light from the sky or distant objects travels downwards into these layers of increasingly rarer (hotter) air. It bends away from the normal. If the angle of incidence becomes greater than the critical angle at the boundary between two air layers, total internal reflection occurs. This reflected light travels upwards to the observer’s eye, creating the illusion of an image displaced from the actual object’s position.