howmuchsun

UV index and sunburn time in Daxing’anling

UV peaks at 6.4 (high) in July, around 11:30 local time. At that intensity, untanned skin of type III burns in about 36 min.

How long before you burn?

Sunburn after 36 min unprotected, at peak UV in July
Peak UV index 6.4 High
With SPF 30 18 h if applied properly and reapplied

UV index month by month

Peak value on a representative day of each month, with burn time for skin type III.

MonthPeak UVCategoryPeak atBurns after
January 0.5 Low 11:30 505 min
February 1.1 Low 11:30 206 min
March 2.4 Low 11:30 98 min
April 4.1 Moderate 11:30 57 min
May 5.6 Moderate 11:30 42 min
June 6.4 High 11:30 36 min
July 6.4 High 11:30 36 min
August 5.5 Moderate 11:30 43 min
September 3.7 Moderate 11:30 63 min
October 1.9 Low 11:30 124 min
November 0.7 Low 11:30 321 min
December 0.4 Low 11:30 652 min

Burn time by skin type

At peak UV in July, with no sunscreen.

Fitzpatrick typeDescriptionBurns after
Type I Always burns, never tans 21 min
Type II Burns easily, tans minimally 26 min
Type III Burns moderately, tans gradually 36 min
Type IV Burns minimally, tans well 47 min
Type V Rarely burns, tans profusely 62 min
Type VI Never burns, deeply pigmented 104 min

UV through the day

UV index by month and hour in Asia/Shanghai local time, daylight saving included. Darker cells mean stronger UV.

UV index by month (rows) and local hour (columns). Each cell shows the rounded value; blank means zero.
Month456789101112131415161718192021
Jan
Feb 1 1 1 1 1
Mar 1 1 2 2 2 2 1 1
Apr 1 2 3 4 4 4 3 2 1 1
May 1 2 3 4 5 6 5 5 3 2 1
Jun 1 2 4 5 6 6 6 5 4 3 2 1
Jul 1 2 3 5 6 6 6 5 4 3 2 1
Aug 1 1 3 4 5 5 5 5 3 2 1
Sep 1 2 3 3 4 3 3 2 1
Oct 1 1 2 2 2 1 1
Nov 1 1 1
Dec

none strongest

Other cities in China

Assumptions

  • Clear sky. These are upper bounds. Cloud reduces UV, though less than people expect — you can burn on an overcast day.
  • No reflection. Snow roughly doubles your effective dose, and water and sand both add to it. None of that is modelled here.
  • Burn times are indicative. Published minimal erythemal doses vary by around 30% between studies, and individuals within a skin type vary more.
  • SPF assumes proper application. Most people apply a quarter of the amount used in testing, so real protection is far lower than the label.

Full methodology, sources and known limitations