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It gets refracted. That means that a light ray leaves the surface at an angle, going down closer to the vertical. Coming up it's refracted away from the vertical.

The theory is based on James Clerk Maxwell's electromagnetic theory , one of main theories of classical physics. Maxwell combined electricity and magnetism into one unified theory by demonstrating that light travels in the form of a plane wave made up from electric and magnetic fields. It was a theory that followed on from earlier experiments by Ampere and Faraday.

Maxwell wrote down formulas describing the behaviour of both these fields, and then added a notional extra term into one of the equations to make them look more balanced. He was a professor of mathematics and did it as a mathematical exercise. From that he did a few steps of algebra with his new equations to show that light travels as a plane wave, and its speed depends on a property of the material called the dielectric constant.

It was 10-15 years before people believed this theory but when Heinrich Hertz discovered radio waves and showed that they also travel as plane waves, there was little more doubt and the whole new technology of radio communications, radar and broadcasting took off.

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What happens when light passes air into water?

it slows down.


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This happens when light bends as it passes throw water?

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