UV Spectra of Sunscreen

By Brandi Yoder

The sun can be incredibly harmful to the skin, not just with painful burns, but the damage that can be done to DNA by the UV rays. This damage can lead to cancers, including melanoma, which affected 34,940 women and 52,170 men in 2017. Sunscreen can greatly reduce the risk of skin damage, but which sunscreen should the consumer use?

Sunscreen comes in different strengths, which are called SPF, or sun protection factor. It is reasonable to assume that with the higher SPF, the consumer will be protected from more of the UV spectrum, and will therefore have less of a chance of receiving DNA damage. In this experiment, sunscreen of varying SPF were applied to a quartz slide and the UV spectra were obtained.

Sources: American Cancer Society, Facts & Figures 2017.