Luminous Objects

A luminous object is one that gives off light, or in other words, glows in the dark. To do so, the object must have its own source of energy. A torch shines because of the energy stored in its batteries, whereas stars shine brightly using energy created by nuclear fusion.

In order for us to see an object that is non-luminous, it must reflect some of the light it receives from a luminous object such as the Sun.

The animation below helps to explain the difference between luminous and non-luminous objects. Move the mouse over the objects to find out the answer; then try and think of some other objects that are luminous.

Use your mouse to find the luminous objects. This demonstration uses Flash. If you do not see anything, you may need to get the Flash Plugin. You can get it from here .