What Causes ‘Mirages’ in the Desert?

Mirages happen because hot air makes light bend. When the ground in the desert gets really hot, it heats up the air just above it. This warm air is less dense than cold air, so when light from the sky passes through it, it bends, like when you look at a straw in a glass of water and it looks bent. This bending makes it seem like there's water on the horizon even though there isn’t.

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Examples

You're driving through the desert on a hot day, and you see what looks like water on the road, but it disappears when you get close.
A mirage can make a distant mountain appear to be floating above the ground in the middle of a desert.
Sometimes, people think they see another car on the highway, only to realize it was just an illusion caused by heat.

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Categories: Science · optics,mirage,desert