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- There are at least two ways that we know light can travel through a vacuum. The first is by observation of the Sun and other stars. Astronauts have measured the pressure in outer space and found that there is a very good vacuum, much better in fact than that which we can easily make on earth. The second is through observations on earth.
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How can light (or electromagnetic radiation) travel through a vacuum when there is nothing there to act as a medium, and do so forever in all directions? For example the light coming from a star millions of light years away.
May 2, 2014 · Light may seem to be an exception, leading many to say that light is a wave that can travel through a vacuum with no medium. Light doesn't use EM fields as its medium; light IS an EM (electromagnetic) wave.
Jul 26, 2011 · I think I understand the basics that, light as it travels through a vacuum oscillates between a magnetic field and a electric field at 90 degrees to each other. How does this all, get a photon from point A to point B in a vacuum if there is no "ether" with which a photon can travel within?
Dec 25, 2011 · Electric and magnetic fields can exist in a vacuum. When an electric field changes, it creates a changing magnetic field, and vice versa. Oscillations between those fields travel at the speed of light through the vacuum. That's the classical view, which does not involve photons.
May 13, 2003 · Yes, a vacuum is necessary for light to travel at its maximum speed. In any other medium, such as air or water, light will encounter particles that can slow it down. However, in a vacuum, there are no particles to interact with, allowing light to travel at its maximum speed without any obstructions.
Light from sun reaches earth through the vacuum present in the space. Light does not require any medium to travel. However, Light can also travel in medium like air, water and solids.
In contrast, light waves can travel through a vacuum, and do not require a medium. In empty space, the wave does not dissipate (grow smaller) no matter how far it travels, because the wave is not interacting with anything else.
