When you’re packing your beach bag, you probably think about sunscreen, towels and snacks. But it turns out that the color of your swimsuit could actually save your life.
Imagine having a superpower that makes you instantly invisible. Sounds cool, right? But if you’re swimming in the ocean, being invisible is the last thing you want. You want lifeguards, your family and your friends to be able to spot you easily in the waves.
Believe it or not, picking the wrong swimsuit color can act like a real-life invisibility cloak once you dive underwater or, heaven forbid, you’re pulled under by force.
Let’s focus on the “Do not wear” list:
• Blue and light blue: This is the ultimate disappearing act. Because the ocean is already blue, blue swimsuits act like camouflage. In a blink of an eye and just below the surface, you completely blend in with the water.
• White: This color is very misleading; you may think it’s a safe choice but guess what, it’s not. When the sun hits the ocean, it creates a bright glare and lots of reflections on the surface, much like glass. White also blends in with seafoam, bubbles and sunlight glare, making it very difficult to spot you.
• Black, gray and dark greens: Dark colors may appear bold on land, but underwater is a different story. Underwater these colors look like shadows, dark rocks, clumps of seaweed and other underwater debris.
So, why exactly does this happen? Well it all comes down to contrast – which is just a fancy word for how well two things stand out from each other. Water absorbs light differently than air. When sunlight travels through water, it gets scattered by waves, bubbles and tiny bits of sand or algae. Within just a few inches of water, many colors lose their brightness and fade away.
If your swimsuit is a color that matches the ocean like blue or matches the reflections like white, your contrast drops to zero. You disappear!
And now you’re probably thinking, if blues and whites are out, and I can’t wear bold dark colors either then, where does that leave me?
Don’t worry, we got you; if you want to be a safety superstar, you want to wear high-visibility neon colors. That’s right, break those rave clothes out.
The number one choice is neon orange; it’s the ultimate contrast color to blue water. It’s the reason hunters and fishermen wear orange vests, or why traffic cones are a bright orange. The next runner up is neon yellow and lime green – fluorescent colors actually absorb invisible light and re-emit it, giving them that glowing effect.
Next time you go shopping for a swimsuit be sure to get that knock-out color. Who knows, maybe you could even make it a fun trend with your beach-going friends. Who can “blind” whom with the boldest color. Turns out, looking like a glowing neon highlighter is the safest way to ride the waves.
