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When you see 'heat rising', what are you actually seeing?

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Admiral Patrick@dubvee.org
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Like the title says: when you see “heat rising” (the wavy/blurry area above a heat source), what are you actually seeing?

Bonus question: How does that cast a shadow? I noticed when I was opening my air fryer, I could see the shadow of the heat rising but, looking at the hot basket itself, couldn’t see it.

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DampSquid@feddit.uk
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Warmer air has a different density to colder air, so the light refracts/bends, like through a prism.
The shadows occur as the light happens to have been focused away from those points.

Edit: Not a scientist. Currently high.

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Admiral Patrick@dubvee.orgOP
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Ah, so it’s air density. I was suspecting it was water vapor.

TIL thanks!

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