Figure 3-8“Windows” Through the Atmosphere Different types of electromagnetic radiation penetrate into Earth’s atmosphere in varying amounts. Visible light, radio waves, microwaves, short-wavelength infrared, and long-wavelength ultraviolet reach all the way to Earth’s surface. The other types of radiation are absorbed or scattered by the gases in the air at different characteristic altitudes (indicated by heights of windows). Although the atmosphere does not have actual windows, astronomers use the term to characterize the passage of radiation through it.