What are radiative effects?

Radiative effects are how heat moves through space using invisible energy called radiation.

Imagine you're sitting by a fire on a cold winter night. Even if you’re not touching the fire, you still feel warm because the fire is sending out heat waves, like little invisible messengers that travel through the air and land on your skin. That’s what radiative effects are, they let heat move from one place to another without needing anything in between, like air or water.

Think of a sunny day: the Sun is shining down on you, but it's not touching you, it’s sending out heat through space. This kind of heat movement is called radiation, and it’s why you can feel warm even when you're not near a fire or in direct sunlight.

If you’ve ever left your phone in the Sun, you might have noticed it gets really hot, not because the Sun is touching it, but because it's sending out invisible heat waves that make your phone warmer. That’s radiative effects in action!