Sun Protection While Soaring - UPF 50+ Clothing

A 2mm acrylic sheet has a fairly sharp cutoff between 375 and 400nm, so transmits about 17% of all UVA (315 - 400nm). The skin has a spectral response that is highest for the UVB but drops significantly in the 375-400nm region, so you'll have to try pretty hard to get a tan in the cockpit. If you think of a glider canopy as an SPF100 layer, you won't be far off.

Acrylic blocks practically all UVB (280 - 315nm) so you won't be making any vitamin D while under perspex.

Glass is worse; typical float (soda lime) glass has a 50% cutoff around 340nm so lets through around 60% UVA and no UVB. My grandmother spent most of her last years sitting in a warm sunroom and got a pretty good tan.

As previously stated, your biggest danger is in hanging around on a sunny airfield, especially in the southern hemisphere. European pilots are only in trouble if they fly above the inversion which caps the pollution layer ;-)

DH
TX

On Friday, April 19, 2019 at 10:29:27 PM UTC-6, wrote:
The meter was designed to check the intensity in the Ulta Violet range of the spectrum. The professor gave me a rather detail lesson of radiation energy in the IR thru UV section of the ‘spectrum’ and it’s ability to transit a medium. He stated that the UV amount was insignificant in the hundreths (sp) of a percent and the meter confirmed it. I could differentiate no difference in value between canopies. UV is very reflective, even off concrete. Angle of sun , time of day, winter/ summer made a big difference.
No harm in doing your own research, but can anyone recall landing with a sunburn. I wonder if standing out on the grid waiting allows one to be expose to high level of reflected UV from all the polish wings. A hat may not be enough. I need to do some more sampling.

R

Interesting. My son has transition glasses, which don't transition/turn dark in his car. However, he still got a blistering sunburn on his arm when he drove from Utah to California last August to start his Sophomore year (windows up). Does the plastic canopy protect more than auto glass? Thanks,
Rick

On Saturday, April 20, 2019 at 1:55:13 PM UTC-4, Richard DalCanto wrote:
On Friday, April 19, 2019 at 10:29:27 PM UTC-6, wrote:
The meter was designed to check the intensity in the Ulta Violet range of the spectrum. The professor gave me a rather detail lesson of radiation energy in the IR thru UV section of the ‘spectrum’ and it’s ability to transit a medium. He stated that the UV amount was insignificant in the hundreths (sp) of a percent and the meter confirmed it. I could differentiate no difference in value between canopies. UV is very reflective, even off concrete. Angle of sun , time of day, winter/ summer made a big difference.
No harm in doing your own research, but can anyone recall landing with a sunburn. I wonder if standing out on the grid waiting allows one to be expose to high level of reflected UV from all the polish wings. A hat may not be enough. I need to do some more sampling.

R

Interesting. My son has transition glasses, which don't transition/turn dark in his car. However, he still got a blistering sunburn on his arm when he drove from Utah to California last August to start his Sophomore year (windows up). Does the plastic canopy protect more than auto glass? Thanks,
Rick

windshield likely tinted, side windows, not.

On Saturday, April 20, 2019 at 11:55:13 AM UTC-6, Richard DalCanto wrote:
On Friday, April 19, 2019 at 10:29:27 PM UTC-6, wrote:
The meter was designed to check the intensity in the Ulta Violet range of the spectrum. The professor gave me a rather detail lesson of radiation energy in the IR thru UV section of the ‘spectrum’ and it’s ability to transit a medium. He stated that the UV amount was insignificant in the hundreths (sp) of a percent and the meter confirmed it. I could differentiate no difference in value between canopies. UV is very reflective, even off concrete. Angle of sun , time of day, winter/ summer made a big difference.
No harm in doing your own research, but can anyone recall landing with a sunburn. I wonder if standing out on the grid waiting allows one to be expose to high level of reflected UV from all the polish wings. A hat may not be enough. I need to do some more sampling.

R

Interesting. My son has transition glasses, which don't transition/turn dark in his car. However, he still got a blistering sunburn on his arm when he drove from Utah to California last August to start his Sophomore year (windows up). Does the plastic canopy protect more than auto glass? Thanks,
Rick

I should also add that my dad would get sunburned on the left side of his face and has sun damage on that side from years of flying his Cessna 421. Do glider canopies offer more protection than the windshield in a Cessna?

On Saturday, April 20, 2019 at 11:56:36 AM UTC-6, Dan Daly wrote:
On Saturday, April 20, 2019 at 1:55:13 PM UTC-4, Richard DalCanto wrote:
On Friday, April 19, 2019 at 10:29:27 PM UTC-6, wrote:
The meter was designed to check the intensity in the Ulta Violet range of the spectrum. The professor gave me a rather detail lesson of radiation energy in the IR thru UV section of the ‘spectrum’ and it’s ability to transit a medium. He stated that the UV amount was insignificant in the hundreths (sp) of a percent and the meter confirmed it. I could differentiate no difference in value between canopies. UV is very reflective, even off concrete. Angle of sun , time of day, winter/ summer made a big difference.
No harm in doing your own research, but can anyone recall landing with a sunburn. I wonder if standing out on the grid waiting allows one to be expose to high level of reflected UV from all the polish wings. A hat may not be enough. I need to do some more sampling.

R

Interesting. My son has transition glasses, which don't transition/turn dark in his car. However, he still got a blistering sunburn on his arm when he drove from Utah to California last August to start his Sophomore year (windows up). Does the plastic canopy protect more than auto glass? Thanks,
Rick

windshield likely tinted, side windows, not.

But is the tinting the thing that blocks UV, or the glass itself? The side windows of the car still block enough that his glasses don't darken inside the car, despite the ability to get a sunburn.

Does the plastic canopy protect more than auto glass? Thanks,
Rick

windshield likely tinted, side windows, not.

But is the tinting the thing that blocks UV, or the glass itself? The side windows of the car still block enough that his glasses don't darken inside the car, despite the ability to get a sunburn.

The glasses probably only respond to UVB (which glass blocks). Your skin tans and burns in response to UVA (which glass doesn't block enough of).

As to getting sunburn inside an acrylic-windowed cockpit, I guess that the UVA cutoff from acrylic that I specified above is more of an 'industry average' - some formulas let through more than others - and that in combination with the amount of time flying was enough to burn skin. They definitely make acrylics which are better at transmitting UV than the standard. Back when the 172 was designed, I doubt whether UVA blocking was a design requirement.

On Friday, April 19, 2019 at 8:44:07 AM UTC-6, JDS wrote:
While looking at the UV damage done to the gelcoat on my glider, it reminds me how much UV radiation we are exposed to while soaring. Particularly out west!

Coolibar (no affilation) is in the Sun Protection Clothing business. Take a look at their website. They are making some great products with innovative materials.

I particularly like their Andros Shirt and fingerless long gloves.
Both with UPF50+ protection.

I did a little more reading. UVA penetrates deeper into the second layer of the skin. It is present year round, and penetrates clouds and glass windows (don’t know about plastic canopies). It causes wrinkles and premature aging of the skin, and skin cancer. UVB is stronger during the summer, penetrates the top layer of the skin, and causes sunburns, DNA damage, and skin cancer. It does not penetrate glass as much. So if the plastic canopies in gliders stop UVB, but no A, you will not get burned, but you will still get sun damage to your skin. I looked into some UV meters on Amazon, but it is unclear how accurate these meters actually are. Personally, for now, I will continue to use sun screen in the glider, and protective clothing, to be sure I block UVA which might be getting through the canopy.

I can't imagine that blue tint helps much. Blue-violet light is just slightly less energetic than UVA light. Grey tint blocks all visible colors by essentially the same amount, and maybe UV too, but it would have to be measured.

Sunscreen all the time is a good idea.

Sun screen helps you to avoid superficial sun burn, but it doesn't do anything against UVA and the subsequent skin cancer. The only thing which helps against skin cancer is clothing.

On Sunday, April 21, 2019 at 1:38:36 AM UTC-6, Tango Whisky wrote:
Sun screen helps you to avoid superficial sun burn, but it doesn't do anything against UVA and the subsequent skin cancer. The only thing which helps against skin cancer is clothing.

That is not correct. Quality sunscreen protects against UVA and UVB.