Remember your 6th grade science teacher said that black absorbs heat and white reflects it? Could it be true? I mean, black is a cool color. All the good guys and bad guys on TV wear black. So how much hotter can it be? A whopping 41 degrees hotter!
That can’t be true, right? Well, let’s put some different colored shirts in the sun to see what happens. The thermal camera sees all.
On a 95 degree day, we placed eight different colored shirts in the sun. They were red, blue, navy, light blue, gray, white, neon yellow, and neon orange. All were made out of the same type of material. Within five minutes, there was a 41 degree difference. Would you rather have a jersey that is 117 degrees or one that is 158 degrees?
What color is the coolest? What color is the hottest? White and neon yellow tie for the coolest colors. Neon orange is a close second. All the other colors are just hot, with navy winning the hottest color at 158 degrees.
So, maybe your 6th grade science teacher had a point. Dark colors are hotter in the sun than white. I don’t know about you, but if you happen to see me in the sun on a summer day, I will be wearing white, white, and white.
P.S. If you want to cool off even more, the Kul Lite cooling vest lowers the temperature another 15 degrees. Learn more at www.KulLite.com.
Many thanks to Steven Gallaher for this post!