Thread

1. GuB-42 · 1790113215 · focus · HN ↗

   I think I got the worst sunburns when I didn't feel hot at all.

   Usually, it involves water, water cools you down, so you don't feel the heat, but it doesn't block UV, so you don't get the warning.

   1. koolba · 1790116675 · focus · HN ↗

      Overcast days are the worst offenders for sunburn because the melanin impaired don’t feel the heat of the sun to remind them they are going to roast.

      1. cortesoft · 1790116816 · focus · HN ↗

         I have always heard sunny snow days are the worst, because you feel cold, but the sun is still hitting you, plus reflecting off the snow to hit you twice.

         1. nephihaha · 1790116968 · focus · HN ↗

            You can get sunburn from light reflecting off water as well, in hot places. Maybe not on its own, but certainly in conjunction with direct sunlight.
      2. nephihaha · 1790116855 · focus · HN ↗

         Depends which part of the world you are in. I've never been sunburnt on an overcast day where I live.

         1. saltcured · 1790117966 · focus · HN ↗

            One of my worst sunburns was in San Diego on an extremely gray day. I should have known better.

            The right thickness marine layer can make the sky seem dim but it's like one massive UV diffuser from horizon to horizon.

      3. pazimzadeh · 1790119709 · focus · HN ↗

         They are also the worst because you get mostly UVA since UVB has a harder time penetrating through cloud cover
      4. bwnkl · 1790138233 · focus · HN ↗

         I agree that it very much depends on latitude and time of year. In most of Europe, overcast days usually don't present much of a problem for me, but I remember spending a day at the beach in Ecuador under very dense cloud cover and getting one of the worst burns I've ever had
   2. nephihaha · 1790116789 · focus · HN ↗

      It depends a lot on the position of the sun in the sky too. It can be warm around sunset and sunrise, but because the sun is so low to the horizon, it is passing through more atmosphere.

      I spent a lot of time out in the sun by the Dead Sea and did not burn at all, since the very low altitude seems to have provided me with extra protection, whereas nearby on the shores of the Red Sea, at sea level, I did burn with similar levels of exposure.

      1. cindyllm · 1790122239 · focus · HN ↗

         [dead]

   3. piltdownman · 1790168065 · focus · HN ↗

      Anecdotally from an Irish dermatologist - the majority of her clients under 30 are holiday sunburn casualties from either Iberian waterparks or activities like snorkeling/skin-diving in SEA. The ones over 30 are basically all farmers.

      She has her entire family wearing SPF20 24/365, constantly reminding me 'it's the overcast days that actually do the long-term damage'.

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