How Do Mirrors Work?

What You'll Learn

• Mirrors work by reflecting light — light bounces off the shiny surface
• A mirror has a thin layer of silver or aluminum on the back of glass
• The light bounces back at the same angle it hits — like a ball bouncing off a wall
• Smooth surfaces reflect light in an organized way; rough surfaces scatter it
• What you see in a mirror is light from you bouncing back into your eyes

Words to Know

Reflect

When light bounces off something

"The mirror reflects my face."

Surface

The outside top layer you can touch

"A mirror has a smooth surface."

Angle

The direction something is tilted

"Light bounces at the same angle."

Glass

A clear, hard material light passes through

"Mirrors are glass and metal."

Check What You Learned

Fun Facts

• Mirrors reflect light via a smooth surface with thin silver or aluminum on glass

  Source: Optical Society of America

• Law of reflection: angle of incidence equals angle of reflection

  Source: Physics Classroom

• Smooth surfaces reflect organized; rough surfaces scatter

  Source: NASA Optics

• Early mirrors were polished metal — copper, bronze, silver

  Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art

• Modern mirrors use "silvering" — depositing thin metal on glass

  Source: Corning Museum

• Mirror images appear reversed because light bounces straight back

  Source: Scientific American