Not Newton Again! Contributers to the Science of Rainbows As with any other thing in this world, rainbows too have been investigated by scienticsts. Rainbows have been a subject of interest for thousands of years, but scientific invetigation started in the 17th century and it still continues today. In 1637, Descartes became the first person to give a correct therortical reason for a rainbow. http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/PictDisplay/Descartes.html Below is a diagram of his contribution to rainbows. It explans how when sunlight (A and F) enters a raindrop, it it bends (C) inside and then seperates (D) as it exists. The light (E) comes back to our eyes and we see the color specturm (M). http://my.unidata.ucar.edu/content/staff/blynds/rnbw.html Isaac Newton was first to establish that all the colors of a rainbow make up white light. He went against the modern veiw of light and said that colors could not be changed. Also he stated "Light itself is an Heterogeneous mixture of differntly coloured rays...colours are not qualifications of light, derived from refrctions, or reflections from natural bodies...but original and connate properties." http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/PictDisplay/Newton.html