Taking Measure Blog: Optical physics and communications

Optical physics and communications

Isabelle Rivera poses smiling at a computer with two monitors, one showing a spreadsheet and the other multiple file icons.

Reaching for the Stars: My Summer Internship Learning About Spectroscopy in Space and on Earth

October 4, 2023

As a summer high school intern at NIST, I got to take a deep dive into one of the ways scientists study space — the absorption and emission of light by matter

NIST researchers Yoshi Ohno and Jane Li demonstrate different types of lighting in their lab on NIST’s campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

The Eye of the Beholder: How Lighting Affects Our Color Perception

June 28, 2023

Remember the social media controversy over the color of a dress? That’s a lighthearted example of how illumination can affect the things we see, but this is

What’s a Physicist? My Summer as a Student Intern at NIST

August 31, 2022

Valeria Viteri-Pflucker found what she was looking for at NIST: hands-on experimental experience.

Detecting Methane Gas Leaks and Other Pollutants Using Frequency Combs: A Q&A With Sammie Finalists

May 4, 2022

The list of what is polluting our atmosphere and contributing to global warming is long and varied. And if we want to solve this problem, being able to

A white telescope dish is surrounded by wooded mountains in autumn colors.

In Case You Missed It From NIST: 2021 Edition

December 21, 2021

While the pandemic still grips the world, researchers at NIST continue their work on COVID-19 related research, as well as the wide range of other science and

Making Measurements With a Fine-Toothed Comb

September 22, 2021

To many people, a measurement sounds mundane, like marking ticks on a ruler or reading the line on a thermometer. It’s a piece of data. And they tend to think

Monitoring the Oceans’ Color for Clues to Climate Change

April 22, 2021

It is February 1994 and I am on the research vessel R/V Moana Wave off the coast of Lanai, Hawaii, with the team of the Marine Optical BuoY (MOBY) project. The

From 1901 to 2021: Measurements Then and Now

March 3, 2021

A lot has changed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the past 120 years. For one thing, we were known as the National Bureau of

$an opalescent close up of Roman glass. There is a clear semi-circular fracture in the center of the piece.$

Ancient Roman Glass, Perceiving Color in LED, 3D Mapping for Public Safety, SRMs in Space: A Sample of Stories From the Social Sphere

May 26, 2020

Photos of culinary masterpieces, opinions on world events, memories from the good times … we share a lot on social media to feel connected and together

How Extreme Ultraviolet Light Helps Give Us Smarter Smartphones and Stronger Satellites

April 21, 2020

In 2019, after decades of effort, manufacturers used a new technology to create smartphones with individual circuit features as small as 7 nanometers (nm), or

Taking Measure