Olive oil glows (fluoresces) because chlorophyll molecules in the oil release energy as red light when exposed to certain wavelengths of light, like that from a green laser.
Here's a breakdown of the process:
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Chlorophyll and Photosynthesis: Olive oil contains trace amounts of chlorophyll, the pigment responsible for photosynthesis in plants. During photosynthesis, chlorophyll molecules capture light energy.
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Broken Chlorophyll Chains: In olive oil, the chlorophyll molecules' chain is broken down.
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Fluorescence: When the olive oil is exposed to a specific wavelength of light (e.g., from a green laser), the chlorophyll molecules absorb this light energy. Because the chain is broken, instead of using this energy for photosynthesis, the chlorophyll molecules release the absorbed energy as light of a longer wavelength – typically red light. This emission of light is fluorescence, causing the olive oil to appear to glow.
In short, the "glow" is actually fluorescence caused by the chlorophyll present in the olive oil, which emits red light after absorbing energy from another light source.
