Why are soap bubbles so colorful? The colors of a soap bubble come from white light, which contains all the colors of the rainbow. When white light reflects from a soap film, some of the colors get brighter, and others disappear. You can think of light as being made up of waves—like the waves in the ocean.

What causes rainbow colors in bubbles?

When light waves hit bubbles, some of the light gets reflected back to your eyes from the outer surface of the bubble. Some of the light also gets reflected back to your eyes from the inner surface, which is mere millionths of an inch farther away. ... That's why bubbles can appear to change colors as they float around.

Why do bubbles look iridescent?

The interaction of light reflecting off the front and back of a soap bubble gives it its colorful appearance. A similar effect explains color-shifting cars. It appears to have paint that changes colors. ...