Book 13, Question 13
Why Does Sunshine Feel Warm on Your Face Even When the Air Is Cold?
Sunshine warms your skin because light carries energy. Your skin absorbs some of that energy as heat. The air can be cold, but the sunlight still warms you!
More fun facts
- The sunlight that reaches Earth's surface is around 53% infrared, 43% visible light and 4 percent ultraviolet.
- When you feel the sun's warmth on your skin, about half of that heat comes from absorbing infrared and a bit less than half from absorbing visible light.
- When sunlight reaches Earth, some is absorbed and some is reflected, and it is the absorbed light that does the heating.
- Sunlight carries its energy across space as radiation, so it can warm your face even when the air around you is cold.
- Radiation is also the warmth you feel when you stand next to a sunny window.
- The Sun's super hot atoms never touch us; what reaches Earth is light, and when your skin absorbs that light, its energy becomes heat.
Sources: nsta.org, NASA Science
Questions kids ask
Can light really heat things up?
Yes. When your skin absorbs sunlight, the light's energy turns into heat.
Why does a sunny window feel warm in winter?
Sunlight streams through the glass and warms whatever absorbs it, including you.