Light and Dark Colored Clothes

KINDS OF CLOTHES WE WEAR IN SUMMER AND WINTER

You know that in summer we prefer light-coloured clothes and in winter we usually wear dark-coloured clothes. Why is it so? Let us find out

Activity 4.10: ( Absorption and Reflection of Heat )

Take two identical tin cans. Paint the outer surface of one black and of the other white (Fig. 4.12).

Fig. 4.12 Containers with black and white surface

Pour equal amounts of water in each and leave them in the mid-day sun for about an hour. Measure the temperature of water in both cans. Do you find any difference in the temperatures?   In which can is the water warmer? You can feel the difference even by touching the water in the two cans.

Activity 4.11:

Fill the two cans used in Activity 4.10 with the same amount of hot water at the same temperature (say, at 60oC). Leave the cans in a room or in a shade. Note the temperature of the water after 10 to 15 minutes. Does the temperature of water in both the cans fall by the same amount?

Do these activities suggest to you the reason why it is more comfortable to wear white or light-coloured clothes in the summer and dark-coloured clothes in the winter? Dark surfaces absorb more heat and, therefore, we feel comfortable with dark coloured clothes in the winter. Light coloured clothes reflect most of the heat that falls on them and, therefore, we feel more comfortable wearing them in the summer.

Woollen clothes keep us warm in winter

In the winter, we use woollen clothes. Wool is a poor conductor of heat. Moreover, there is air trapped in between the wool fibres. This air prevents the flow of heat from our body to cold surroundings. So, we feel warm.

Suppose you are given the choice in winter of using either one thick blanket or two thin blankets joined together. What would you choose and why? Remember that there would be a layer of air in between the blankets.