I always hear that we should avoid the sun or make sure to put on sunscreen in the afternoon when the sun is the most intense. Why is the sun’s rays more harmful when it is directly overhead vs in the morning soon after sunrise? Either way, the sun is shining directly on me so not sure what causes the difference in intensity.
In: Planetary Science
At sunrise and sunset, the sunlight has the most atmosphere to travel through to get to your skin.
More air in the way means more harmful UV rays get absorbed by the air, so less of them reach your skin.
In the afternoon, the sun is close to its ‘highest’ point above your head, where it then has the lowest amount of atmosphere to travel through.
This means more harmful UV rays reach your skin, causing more damage than in the morning or evening.
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