Amazing world of insects / Fireflies; Masters of light

Lucky children of country life & believing science

If you've spent your childhood in a rural area you probably are very lucky. Even though you may not have noticed this or maybe you even complained that you don't have the opportunities of modern life that your peers have but as you'll understand later on; you are very lucky, just like me...

In the dark nights of summer, you'll witness one of the most interesting phenomena of nature if you are lucky. The parade of hundreds of Fireflies in the darkness of the night with their blinking lights. This will become one of the most unforgettable moments of your life. This miracle that you'll solve the mystery of as you grow up by science; might be the first seeds of your belief -in fact, to run after knowledge you first need to believe in the things that it will teach and bring you- in nature and science.

---

Let's talk a little about fireflies
The bugs that illuminate future with their light

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Lampyridae
TYPE: Invertebrates
DIET: Omnivores
AVERAGE LIFESPAN: 2 MONTHS

The biggest difference of these bugs which are from Lampyridae family of Coleoptera from the others is their ability to spread light. In warm climates, they tend to live at moist places like edges of water and edges of Lakes. The fireflies which have around 2000 different species have drawn the attention of humans throughout history.

While the males have wings and can fly, the females do not have wings and they usually live between the plants and wait for their mate to find them. The main reason fireflies spread light is to find a mate. The fireflies which use light as a tool for communication at the same time spread light for the purpose of protection. They usually spread yellow and green light

The blinking frequencies of the light differ between the male and the female. Moreover, it is known that each species has a different way of spreading light... Actually, the light is the identity of the bugs...

---

Humans and fireflies:

Apart from the romantic ambiance it creates, it, of course, is not possible to think that humans don't use this light source

It is still used as a light source in some regions. In China, it was used as a reading light, earlier. Moreover, it is known that people living on the rural of Brazil who are going on a night trip were attaching fireflies to their hair and ankles. They were even putting fireflies inside carved pumpkins and using it as a light source. Actually, I found this cruel, maybe I'm too sensitive but mankind will use everything on the planet. And this is our talent...

---

Masters of light; bioluminescence

How do these perfect biological light source bugs do this?
How is it that there is no heat radiation while spreading light? How can they be a 100% efficient light source?
You know, the light sources we use only turns around 10% of the energy that it uses to light and the rest will radiate as heat energy.

Scientists have searched for the answer to this question for many years...

The light that is created inside the stomach of fireflies is in yellow and green of the visible light spectrum. How are they managing 100% light efficiency without any energy loss? The light here is a kind that is actually created as a result of a series of chemical reactions and what we call cold light.

The light organ of fireflies are located behind the abdomen area and it has a light reflecting surface. It creates light by using 2 chemical substances. When luciferin and Luciferase enzyme contact with oxygen, the occurring chemical reaction creates light. The amount of oxygen determines the duration of radiance. Fireflies get oxygen from the air canals inside their abdomens.

Bioluminance and technology

Luminance which was derived from the Latin word lumen, meaning light, is created in a different way from the known light sources.

In the luminance events that we see in LEDs and neon lights; The cold light is created as a result of the molecule getting rid of the energy stored on it by radiating photons and get into steady state.

When Bruce Branchini and his team investigated the reason of the yellow, orange and blue light created inside the abdomen region of fireflies, they came to the conclusion that this could be caused by burning of luciferase enzyme of luciferin which is a chemical found in nature. But, because the oxygen in molecular form reacting with luciferin is not so likely, after studies of this reaction mechanism, they came to conclusion that the substance causing this reaction was the Superoxide anion(02-) which is a molecular oxygen with an extra electron.

And recently, in studies done by Japanese scientists, it was determined that humans also had the specialty of bioluminescence but it was at a level that can not be seen by naked eye.

Imaging of Ultraweak Spontaneous Photon Emission from Human Body Displaying Diurnal Rhythm

---

"Science continues to evolve with the inspiration it gets from nature. While the world's population rapidly increases and energy sources are vanishing very quickly, maybe, the days that we will start to create light that we need to sustain our lives and also we use it with our sassy pleasures with this kind of methods are close, I hope. Who knows, maybe Times square maybe Eiffel Tower will be lit by using this method one day.…

images: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

references:

• https://www.britannica.com/
• https://www.sciencedaily.com/
• http://fiztan.phd.elte.hu/english/student/pc_2013_szakmany.pdf
• http://photobiology.info/Branchini2.html)
• http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0006256)