Neutral Points
There are three commonly detectable points of zero polarization of diffuse sky radiation (known as neutral points) lying along the vertical circle through the sun.
- The Arago point, named after its discoverer, is customarily located at about 20° above the antisolar point; but it lies at higher altitudes in turbid air. The latter property makes the Arago distance a useful measure of atmospheric turbidity.
- The Babinet point, discovered by Babinet in 1840, is located about 15° to 20° above the sun, hence it is difficult to observe because of solar glare.
- The Brewster point, discovered by Brewster in 1840, is located about 15° to 20° below the sun; hence it is difficult to observe because of solar glare.
Read more about this topic: Diffuse Sky Radiation
Famous quotes containing the words neutral and/or points:
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Photographs of friends, the window and the trees
Merging in one neutral band that surrounds
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—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“The men who carry their points do not need to inquire of their constituents what they should say, but are themselves the country which they represent: nowhere are its emotions or opinions so instant and so true as in them; nowhere so pure from a selfish infusion.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)