The blue color perception of Cherenkov radiation is often intuitively attributed to its spectrum. However observations usually take place through several meters of water which strongly modifies the original spectrum. A quantitative description of color allows to judge the relative importance of source spectrum versus water influence. This physics example nicely illustrates the scientific method of questioning accepted intuitive reasoning and explanations for phenomena.

中文翻译：

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切伦科夫辐射：为什么被感知为蓝色？

切伦科夫辐射的蓝色感知通常直观地归因于其光谱。但是，观察通常是在几米深的水中进行的，这会极大地改变原始光谱。颜色的定量描述可以判断源光谱与水影响的相对重要性。这个物理示例很好地说明了质疑已接受的直观推理和现象解释的科学方法。