Why is chlorophyll green?
a. It absorbs all wavelengths in the visible spectrum.
b. It absorbs wavelengths only in the red portions of the spectrum (680–700 nm).
c. It absorbs wavelengths only in the blue part of the visible spectrum (450–480 nm).
d. It absorbs wavelengths in only the blue and red parts of the visible spectrum.

Question

Why is chlorophyll green?

a. It absorbs all wavelengths in the visible spectrum.

b. It absorbs wavelengths only in the red portions of the spectrum (680–700 nm).

c. It absorbs wavelengths only in the blue part of the visible spectrum (450–480 nm).

d. It absorbs wavelengths in only the blue and red parts of the visible spectrum.

Accepted Answer

Welcome back. Let's look at our next question. It says carotenoids are yellow and red to orange because and we have choices of they absorb yellow and red to the orange wavelength of light. They reflect wavelength in the yellow and red to orange part of the spectrum. They are accessory pigments. Or they absorb wavelengths in the red part and reflecting the blue part of the visible spectrum. Well, luckily this is a nice easy question for us. Um We recall from our continent videos and uh different objects will absorb or reflect different wavelengths of light and an object appears the color of the wavelength it reflects. So objects absorb all colors of light except for the color they appear. So red object absorbs all the wavelengths except read, it reflects back red. Our eyes perceive the red light bouncing off of that object. So we see it as red. So in this case carotenoids appear yellow and red to orange because when we look here at Choice B, they reflect wavelength and the yellow and red to orange part of the spectrum. So that's important to remember because sometimes certain wavelengths of light um when absorbed cause certain reactions, but we need to remember that the wavelengths that are absorbed other colors we don't see from the object, the colors we see on the object or wavelengths that are reflected and not absorbed. So Choice A. Is incorrect because the absorbed wavelengths we don't see Choice C. Is incorrect. Doesn't have anything to do with them being accessory pigments, just which wavelengths are reflected. And choice D is incorrect because if they absorbed wavelengths in the red part, we wouldn't see red. They reflected wavelengths in the blue part, we would see them as blue. So again, carotenoids are yellow and red to orange because Choice B. They reflect wavelength in the yellow and red to orange part of the spectrum. See you in the next video.

Verified video answer for a similar problem:

Key Concepts

Chlorophyll

Visible Spectrum

Light Absorption and Reflection