Radiance
Radiance and spectral radiance are measures of the quantity of radiation that passes through or is emitted from a surface and falls within a given solid angle in a specified direction. They are used in radiometry to characterize diffuse emission and reflection of electromagnetic radiation. In astrophysics, radiance is also used to quantify emission of neutrinos and other particles. The SI unit of radiance is watts per steradian per square metre (W·sr−1·m−2), while that of spectral radiance is W·sr−1·m−2·Hz−1 or W·sr−1·m−3 depending on if the spectrum is a function of frequency or of wavelength.
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Famous quotes containing the word radiance:
“The radiance was that of the full, setting, and blood-red moon, which now shone vividly through that once barely- discernible fissure,... extending from the roof of the building, in a zigzag direction, to the base. While I gazed, this fissure rapidly widened.”
—Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849)
“Miracles occur,
if you care to call those spasmodic
Tricks of radiance miracles. The wait’s begun again,
The long wait for the angel,
For that rare, random descent.”
—Sylvia Plath (1932–1963)
“Surrealism ... is the forbidden flame of the proletariat embracing the insurrectional dawn—enabling us to rediscover at last the revolutionary moment: the radiance of the workers’ councils as a life profoundly adored by those we love.”
—“Manifesto of the Arab Surrealist Movement” (1975)