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Add pictures, a video explanation, a drawing about what you would do with a pot of gold!

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Read the article and then answer the question. 

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Read the article and then answer the question. 

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What is the most interesting fact you read about?

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Who doesn't like rainbows? Sure, some grouches might not care too much for them. But watch what happens when a rainbow suddenly, almost magically, appears on the horizon, a delicate burst of color gently washed across the sky. People stop what they're doing. Stare. Snap photos with their smartphones. And smile.

A rainbow's ability to bring joy to just about anyone is probably why they're painted on kids' cheeks at fairs. Why they're used to decorate birthday cakes, garden flags and bedding. Why they're mentioned in lyrics, poems and other writings. Why they're the stuff of folklore across many countries and peoples, often signifying a link to God or the heavens.

So what, exactly, is a rainbow? Strangely, it's just an optical illusion. We see rainbows when light strikes drops of water. The light is refracted, or changes directions, then is reflected by the back of the water drops. As this reflected light is leaving the water, it's refracted again at several angles [source: National Geographic].

You'd think we mortals would know everything about rainbows, as popular as they are. Yet there are actually quite a few myths out there about these multihued illusions. Think you're pretty rainbow-savvy? Here's betting you learn at least one new fact about them by the time you finish this article. Our first rainbow myth is probably the most famous.

One of the most storied rainbow myths is that there's a pot of gold at the end of every one. Not only that, but that the pot of gold is guarded by a tricky leprechaun. The legend goes like this:

Once upon a time, the Vikings lived in Ireland, looting and plundering as they pleased, then burying their ill-gotten treasures all over the countryside. When they eventually departed from the Emerald Isle, they inadvertently left behind some of their booty, which the leprechauns found. Now, the leprechauns knew the Vikings had gotten their treasures through stealing, which was wrong. This bad behavior made the leprechauns mistrust all people, Viking or not. In order to ensure no humans could take what they now considered their gold, the leprechauns reburied it in pots deep underground all over the island. When rainbows appear, they always end at a spot where some leprechaun's pot of gold is buried [source: Mystical Myth].

Here's the catch: Believers who've searched for the legendary pot o' gold always end up stymied, because they can never find the rainbow's end. The reason for that is on the next page.

It's true rainbows appear to form perfectly rounded arches. But in reality, rainbows form full circles. Then why don't we see circles? When we're standing on the ground, we can only see light that's reflected by raindrops above the horizon. Thus, we usually can't see a rainbow's lower, hidden half, though they are sometimes, but rarely, seen as independent circles in the sky.

There is one way you may be able to see a full-circle rainbow, though. If you're a pilot or passenger in an airplane or helicopter - and thus can see below the horizon - you might see a rainbow as a full circle. Sometimes people climbing tall mountains can view circular rainbows as well [sources: National Geographic].

Since a rainbow is a circle you'll never reach the end or the bottom. Rainbows seem to move when you do, because the light that forms the bow is always at a specific distance and angle from you [source: Howard]. Remember we said earlier that rainbows were optical illusions? That's why you'll never find your pot of gold, alas.

This is an interesting "myth," because depending on how you look at it, it can be considered a true or false statement. In school you probably learned that the colors of the rainbow are (in order) red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. These are actually the colors of the visible spectrum.

Red has the longest wavelength and violet the shortest. (Some scientists think indigo is so similar to blue that it's indistinguishable for most people [source: National Geographic].) But those seven hues are not the only ones in the world, of course. Where's the pink, for example? Or brown? Or sage, aqua, celadon and coral?

Those colors, and more, are actually there in the rainbow. They're just invisible. Rainbows contain upward of 1 million colors - that's right, 1 million - in a much larger continuum than the seven measly ones with which we're familiar [source: Howard]. Unfortunately, our human peepers can't see all of those other hues. So does this mean rainbows contain them or not? That's for you to debate.

One of the more fascinating facts about rainbows is that no two people can see the exact same rainbow. You may think you're seeing the same thing; you might even describe the rainbow you're seeing to the friend next to you, who will agree that what she's seeing looks just like the one you described. But you're truly not seeing the same thing. Here's why:

When you're looking at a rainbow, you're looking at light that's reflected by raindrops sitting above the horizon. But your horizon is always different - albeit, sometimes only slightly different - from everyone else's, and vice versa.

To put it a little differently, the center of the rainbow arc you're seeing sits on an imaginary line stretching from your eye to the sun. Since your eyes and those of someone else's, even someone next to you, can't be in the same place in space simultaneously, the two of you can never see the same rainbow. If that's not enough to ponder, consider this: Even our own two eyes see slightly different rainbows [sources: National Geographic, Rao, Science Kids].

You might think that your chances of seeing a rainbow have nothing to do with the time of day. After all, there can be rain, fog or mist followed by a burst of sunshine in the morning, noon or as evening approaches. This is true, yet showers (one of the most common rainbow precursors) are much more frequent in the late afternoon than they are in the early morning or midday, so rainbow sightings are more likely as the day is winding down. The sun is also at a more favorable angle then - 42 degrees or lower in the horizon [sources: Howard, Rao].

We should mention that this phenomenon mainly pertains to rainbows and the summer. In cooler months when the sun doesn't get as high, you might well see a rainbow in midday.

Storms typically move from the west to the east, while the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. So if it's raining in the morning, it will likely be raining in the west. Since the sun is in the east, any visible rainbows will be in the west (the sun has to be at your back in order to see a rainbow). In the late afternoon, the situation will be reversed. Now the sun is in the west, and any showers that pop up will hit your locale, then move to the east - the direction you'll need to be looking (with the sun at your back) if you want to spot a rainbow [source: Rao].

Rainbows can multiply. Double, tertiary (triple) and quaternary (quadruple) rainbows all can occur. Double rainbows occur when light gets reflected twice inside water droplets. When this happens, the second rainbow appears above the main one and is fainter. Its colors are also reversed (red is on the inner section and violet on the outer arch) due to the second reflection [source: National Geographic.

A tertiary rainbow occurs when light is reflected a third time. But you have to be facing the sun to see one because the sun is its center. Tertiary rainbows are very difficult to notice partly because you're looking into the sun, and partly because they're quite faint and very broad. Even harder to see are quaternary rainbows, which form when light is reflected a fourth time. You also need to be facing the sun to spot these, and they're even fainter than tertiary rainbows [source: National Geographic].

And it doesn't stop there: Scientists have detected a 200th order rainbow (that's a rainbow with light reflected 200 times) in the lab [source: National Geographic].

So now it's time to confess. Were you stumped by any of these? If you weren't, I'd suggest investigating a career in meteorology.

Originally Published: Mar 13, 2015

Rainbow Myth FAQs

What order do the rainbow colors go in?

Traditionally kids are taught that there are seven colors in the rainbow and the order of those colors is: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. The acronym that is used to remember this order is "ROY G. BIV", which represents the initial of each color of the spectrum. Are there many other colors present, too? Absolutely, but that doesn't make for such a handy mnemonic device.

Are there really seven colors in the rainbow?

The seven colors are actually the colors of the visible spectrum. However, these seven hues are not the only ones in the rainbow. In fact, there are more than 1 million colors in a rainbow, but they are not all visible to humans.

What happens when we see a rainbow?

A rainbow is just an optical illusion. We see rainbows when light strikes drops of water. It then refracts, or changes, direction and then is reflected by the back of the water drops. When this reflected light is leaving the water, it's refracted again at several angles, which allows us to see the colors of the rainbow.

What is the myth about rainbows?

There are lots of myths about rainbows, such as that there's a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow guarded by a tricky leprechaun or that rainbows form perfect arcs or that rainbows only appear with rain.

What do rainbows symbolize?

Rainbows are considered to be a symbol of hope in many cultures.

Author's Note: 10 Myths About Rainbows

I definitely learned a thing or two (or three or four) from researching this article. Now I'm on a mission to spot a moonbow. Guess that means I need to go to the Caribbean ...

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Did you know no two people see the same rainbow? Or that they contain 1 million colors - not just the handful we learn in school? Find out how to make your own rainbow - or, if you'd rather, how to make one disappear.

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Watch this video and then answer the question below.

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Watch this video and then answer the question below.

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Draw the best double rainbow you can and upload the picture!

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The Magic of Double Rainbows - Science on the Web #13

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that rainbows can appear during the night

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There are double rainbows and its rare

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An interesting fact that I read is that anyone could create a rainbow and it isn't just a thing that happens on it's own.

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Everyone sees the same rainbow

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there is a pot of gold at he end of every rainbow.

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above

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the most interesting thing that I read was that every time a rainbow appears at the end of it there is a pot of gold where one of the leprechauns buried their gold.

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A rainbow is a optical illusion

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i would just save it

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It's rare but rainbows are able to  multiply/double.

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Rainbows form full circles.

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Rainbows only appear during the day.

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rainbows are just light being reflected off of water drops

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The most interesting fact I read about is that rainbow's are just a optical illusion.

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i would sell 50% of the gold and then invest that money then when i get the money back form investments buy more gold coins then start a gold business then invest my own money in the business then boom richest man in the world .

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For a rainbow to be formed there only has to be water droplets in the air so, lights shine through the droplets and creates a rainbow.

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I will sell some and take a bath in the rest and give some to family and friends

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I would trade in the gold for cash because some places might now take gold or even believe it's real gold.

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The most int-resting thing I read was "So what, exactly, is a rainbow? Strangely, it's just an optical illusion".

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An interesting fact that I found it that everyone sees the same rainbow.

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I would probably keep half of it and then try to sell the other half. Then again i'd probably just keep it all to myself and I could be the richest in the world

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I would buy things with some of it but just save the rest.

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The most interesting thing I learned is that you can make rainbows.

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I would trade in half of it and keep the rest because the other I can resell it for more.

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I would save some and sell some.

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I would sell it for twice the price

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Rainbows are full circles.

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I would get all the kids I wanted as a kid so I can finally be satisfied then donate the money to animal shelters or poor people.

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I would eat, it every day. until I become gold.

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I would sell the gold and make money and then give the money I make to my parents.

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The most interesting fact is that the rainbow is one big circle.

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I would trade the gold in for cash so I could donate some, give my family some, and more

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somethig that was cool to me was that rainbows can be in a cricle

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If I found a pot of gold I would probably sell some of it and then keep the rest so I don't have the money all at once and keep the rest of the gold in a safe place where no one can find it.

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We can make rainbows

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I just sell it for money and keep some.

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What I would do with it is that I would invest in the gold and give some to family and friends.

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I like rainbows :)

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Buy a mansion with it and other usless stuff like robux on roblox, or a baking store.