[CTcard]

I don't agree with either of the below quotes taken from random internet articles.  Everyone knows black absorbs more heat than white or light colors.  Does that translate into clothing?  Can someone explain the thermal dynamics between clothing and skin?

"When we wear white, we cook ourselves. The best color to keep cool in the heat, it turns out, is to wear black. Black absorbs everything coming in from the sun, sure. But black also absorbs energy from the body instead of reflecting it back."

"In most cases white clothes look just like black clothes in the infrared spectrum. They both reflect about the same amount of thermal radiation."

My own uneducated guess is the amount of sweat a fabric absorbs and retains is more important than color for how uncomfortable a physically active person feels due to the heat.

That's a dangerous question to ask on a board like this because there are folks (like me) who could answer in excruciating detail thereby torturing the majority who don't care all that much.

The short version: both statements and the related articles (which pop up quickly on an internet search) are wrong in concept and the top article itself is particularly annoyingly dumb by claiming one should chide others for not understanding physics while getting the physics 100% wrong.

However, your last comment hits close. In at least many cases, the lightness of the fabric and fit of the garment may matter more than the color. The ability to evaporate sweat makes a big difference; the heat that evaporating sweat dissipates is the reason we sweat in the first place. And in the Lubbock case, a dry heat makes sweating much more efficient than in swampy Houston or Florida.
[When I lived in Scottsdale, I was amazed at the cooling effect of the misters around small outdoor bars. You rarely see these in the hot, humid east because the air is already saturated and the mist just makes people wet ... and hot.]

[CTcard]

I don't agree with either of the below quotes taken from random internet articles.  Everyone knows black absorbs more heat than white or light colors.  Does that translate into clothing?  Can someone explain the thermal dynamics between clothing and skin?

"When we wear white, we cook ourselves. The best color to keep cool in the heat, it turns out, is to wear black. Black absorbs everything coming in from the sun, sure. But black also absorbs energy from the body instead of reflecting it back."

"In most cases white clothes look just like black clothes in the infrared spectrum. They both reflect about the same amount of thermal radiation."

My own uneducated guess is the amount of sweat a fabric absorbs and retains is more important than color for how uncomfortable a physically active person feels due to the heat.

That's a dangerous question to ask on a board like this because there are folks (like me) who could answer in excruciating detail thereby torturing the majority who don't care all that much.

The short version: both statements and the related articles (which pop up quickly on an internet search) are wrong in concept and the top article itself is particularly annoyingly dumb by claiming one should chide others for not understanding physics while getting the physics 100% wrong.

However, your last comment hits close. In at least many cases, the lightness of the fabric and fit of the garment may matter more than the color. The ability to evaporate sweat makes a big difference; the heat that evaporating sweat dissipates is the reason we sweat in the first place. And in the Lubbock case, a dry heat makes sweating much more efficient than in swampy Houston or Florida.
[When I lived in Scottsdale, I was amazed at the cooling effect of the misters around small outdoor bars. You rarely see these in the hot, humid east because the air is already saturated and the mist just makes people wet ... and hot.]