The article talks about what a mirage is, because of what a similar phenomenon arises, how it can be dangerous and what its types are.
Around us every second there are many physical, chemical and other processes. True, most of them have a form to which people are accustomed to and do not pay any attention. For example, boiling water on a stove, which turns into steam. But even if you think about a more global scale, for example, about the burning of the Sun, this fact will still not surprise anyone. But in fact, surprisingly and so far not subject to human reproduction reactions take place in its bowels. But such discussions can probably be of interest only to a person, who is sincerely fond of science.
However, sometimes there are situations when the simplest and most harmless natural phenomena and physical processes can greatly surprise, confuse, and very rarely even kill a person. Rather, just push him to some unreasonable destructive actions. And one of these is a mirage.
Mirage ... This word was probably heard by all people, and it is associated primarily with hot deserts, where unfortunate travelers, seeing illusory oases, rushed to them. However, not everyone knows, as a result of which such visions arise and what kinds of them are. We’ll talk about this.
Origin of the word
It has French roots and in the original sounds like mirage, which literally means “visibility”. A mirage is one of the most common optical illusions that occurs as a result of the refraction of light rays at the boundary between layers of air, which differ sharply in temperature. And sometimes, as a result of a mirage, an observer, besides a really existing distant object, also sees his reflection in the sky. So a mirage is a rather interesting optical atmospheric phenomenon. However, for a very long time, people could not understand its nature and endowed it with mystical meaning or mistook it for intrigues. Many legends and beliefs are associated with mirages, especially in the east.
Now we will analyze the types of mirages.
Lower
This type of mirage is the most common, and many have seen it. To see him, it is not necessary to be in a hot desert. It is characterized by the fact that as a result of a strong drop in temperature with height, above a flat surface, for example, asphalt, concrete or sand, a person observes puddles of water. And this illusion is very convincing. And for many people in antiquity, who found themselves without water in the desert, to see such a mirage is to get an imaginary hope of salvation.
Upper
A similar type of mirage is usually observed in cold conditions, when the air temperature rises with increasing height, for example, in the polar regions on large flat ice floes. In natural nature, this is quite rare, and not all eminent travelers who have visited the northern parts of our planet have seen this type of mirage. The meaning of this phenomenon is that if the bending of the sun's rays is exactly the same as the curve of the Earth’s surface, then this allows you to see objects that are very far away beyond the horizon. There is a legend that the Vikings discovered Iceland precisely thanks to him. So a mirage is sometimes quite a useful phenomenon. And perhaps this is the explanation of myths about flying ships - such a mirage at sea makes them visible from the horizon and visually greatly increases both the size and speed of the ship.
Side
With side mirages, everything is somewhat less exciting than with other types. They arise as a result of strong solar heating of vertical surfaces. For example, there is a documented fact when in the Middle Ages the fortress wall shone like a mirror, and outwardly it seemed that it had become partially invisible and ghostly. So now we know the meaning of the word mirage and figured out what it is.
Volumetric mirage
This type is also quite rare and mainly in the mountains. During this illusion, one can see relatively close oneself or other objects in a distorted perspective. A similar phenomenon is explained by the presence of water particles in the “stagnant” mountain air.
Culture
A mirage as a phenomenon is strongly reflected in culture - films, books, legends and fairy tales. Since ancient times, many travelers or researchers have been deceiving mirages by showing water where it does not exist. And by the way, if you go on a hot day on a flat surface, for example, a road, then the lower mirage will move further and further as you approach it. One can only imagine the moral torment experienced by people who were stuck in the desert without a drop of water and saw such a deceptive phenomenon.
A mirage is an illusion of water; it is precisely such a form that is most widespread both in life and in culture of various kinds. But as you can see, on this alone its varieties do not end there.