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- This article is about mirage, an optical phenomenom. For other meanings, see Mirage (disambiguation).
A mirage is an optical phenomenon which
often occurs naturally. The kind most commonly seen (known as inferior mirage, because the inverted image lies below the erect
one) is produced by the refraction of light when it passes into a layer of warm
air lying close to a heated ground surface. This is an example of gradient index optics. Example images of inferior mirages
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Road mirage
Inferior mirage
Imagine reflected from below
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In deserts, mirages may give the appearance of a lake or other large body of water
in the distance; this is actually an image of the sky being refracted back up from the warm air lying over the sand. On tarmacked
roads, mirages give the impression of puddles of water in the distance.
More spectacular mirages (superior mirages) are produced by a temperature inversion near eye level. In these, the inverted image lies above the erect one; and
there may even be several alternating layers of erect and inverted images. These are known as the Fata Morgana.
Example images of Superior mirages
(Temperature inversions over cold Lake Superior)
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Land/trees at horizon
Tree shown which are normally invisible below horizon
Superior mirage reflected from above
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Mirage of ore ship
(Uncertain effect)
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Sunrise first light
Super-refracted sunlight
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Sunrise over sea
Double sun image:
ABOVE: Superior mirage
BELOW: super-refracted sun
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Mirage
Mirage is also the name of a one-off character from Static Shock.
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