Why do things turn dark when wet?
In: Chemistry
If water is transparent, why does the ocean appear dark?
Light that hits the surface of the water is scattered in directions other than where your eye is, so those parts of the ocean surface appear darker. And then there’s one part that directs the light *just right*: those are the shiny parts of the surface that gleam and sometimes ruin your beach photos.
For a similar reason, the layer of water on wet materials changes the amount of light reflected towards your eyes. Less light is reflected from those parts to your eyes, and so they appear darker.
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