Microwave ovens heat food using microwaves, a form of electromagnetic radiation similar to radio waves. Microwaves have three characteristics that allow them to be used in cooking: they are reflected by metal; they pass through glass, paper, plastic, and similar materials ; and they are absorbed by foods.
What are 3 facts about microwaves?
- Microwave oven is a direct descendant of radar.
- The first microwave oven that was commercially available had 1.8 meters in height and weighed 340 kilograms. ...
- Microwaves are reflected by metal.
- The heating effect of microwave radiation was discovered accidentally in 1945.
What are characteristics of microwaves?
Properties of Microwaves
Microwaves are the waves that radiate electromagnetic energy with shorter wavelength . Microwaves are not reflected by Ionosphere. Microwaves travel in a straight line and are reflected by the conducting surfaces. Microwaves are easily attenuated within shorter distances.
What are 3 examples of microwaves?
- Long Distance Wireless Transmission. Most wireless transmission systems are based on microwave technology. ...
- Satellite Communication. ...
- Cell Phone Communication. ...
- Wi-Fi. ...
- Global Positioning System (GPS) ...
- Radar. ...
- Microwave Ovens. ...
- Bluetooth.
What are the properties of microwave radiation?
- The microwave is reflected by metal surfaces.
- They pass through glass and plastics.
- They can pass through the atmosphere. ...
- Water absorbs a particular frequency of microwaves. ...
- Microwave transmission is affected by wave effects like reflection, refraction, diffraction, and interference.
What are 5 uses of microwaves?
Microwaves are widely used in modern technology, for example in point-to-point communication links, wireless networks, microwave radio relay networks, radar, satellite and spacecraft communication, medical diathermy and cancer treatment, remote sensing, radio astronomy, particle accelerators, spectroscopy, industrial ...
What are the dangers of microwaves?
Microwave radiation can heat body tissue the same way it heats food. Exposure to high levels of microwaves can cause a painful burn . Two areas of the body, the eyes and the testes, are particularly vulnerable to RF heating because there is relatively little blood flow in them to carry away excess heat.
What was the first microwave?
The first commercial microwave oven was tested in a Boston restaurant in 1947 . Later that year, Raytheon introduced the Radarange 1161. It stood 5.5 feet (1.7 meters) tall, weighed 750 lbs. (340 kilograms) and cost $5,000, according to Gallawa.
Do stars give off microwaves?
Unlike radio waves, however, microwaves are small enough to completely bounce off of small objects (such as airplanes). ... Stars and other objects in the universe emit radiation in wavelengths found throughout the electromagnetic spectrum, including radio waves and microwaves.
Who invented microwaves?
The true story is that it was invented utterly by accident one fateful day more than 70 years ago, when a Raytheon engineer named Percy Spencer was testing a military-grade magnetron and suddenly realized his snack had melted.
Do cell phones use microwaves?
Cell phones send signals to (and receive them from) nearby cell towers (base stations) using RF waves. This is a form of energy in the electromagnetic spectrum that falls between FM radio waves and microwaves. Like FM radio waves, microwaves, visible light, and heat, RF waves are a form of non-ionizing radiation.
Are microwaves visible to humans?
The human retina can only detect incident light that falls in waves 400 to 720 nanometers long, so we can't see microwave or ultraviolet wavelengths. This also applies to infrared lights which has wavelengths longer than visible and shorter than microwaves, thus being invisible to the human eye.
What are two examples of microwaves?
- Ovens. One of the major applications of microwaves can be seen in the kitchen appliances such as a microwave oven. ...
- GPS. ...
- Wi-Fi. ...
- Bluetooth. ...
- RADAR. ...
- Communication Systems. ...
- Medical Equipment. ...
- Weapons and Military Equipment.
What are advantages of using a microwave?
Microwaves are convenient to use, they do not burn food, they are highly economical and they heat food faster and healthier than other methods. On the flip side, you'll need to use microwave-safe vessels for cooking.
What is the main advantage of microwave?
You can directly control cooking time , thus you have much better control over how much power you use. They also don't retain heat nor do they heat up everything in your kitchen. Microwave ovens use less energy than all conventional ovens or stoves since they directly heat up the water in the food.
How can you protect yourself from microwave radiation?
- Keep a distance, if possible from cell phone towers – the further you are away, the less radiation you will get.
- Add microwave shielding to your home and use a microwave radiation protection device.
