howmuchsun

UV index and sunburn time in Dundee

UV peaks at 5.8 (moderate) in June, around 13:30 local time. At that intensity, untanned skin of type III burns in about 40 min.

How long before you burn?

Sunburn after 40 min unprotected, at peak UV in June
Peak UV index 5.8 Moderate
With SPF 30 20 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 0.2 Low 12:30 951 min
February 0.8 Low 12:30 297 min
March 1.9 Low 12:30 125 min
April 3.5 Moderate 13:30 67 min
May 4.9 Moderate 13:30 47 min
June 5.8 Moderate 13:30 40 min
July 5.8 Moderate 13:30 40 min
August 4.8 Moderate 13:30 49 min
September 3.0 Low 13:30 78 min
October 1.3 Low 12:30 175 min
November 0.4 Low 11:30 577 min
December 0.2 Low 12:30 1476 min

Burn time by skin type

At peak UV in June, with no sunscreen.

Fitzpatrick typeDescriptionBurns after
Type I Always burns, never tans 23 min
Type II Burns easily, tans minimally 29 min
Type III Burns moderately, tans gradually 40 min
Type IV Burns minimally, tans well 52 min
Type V Rarely burns, tans profusely 69 min
Type VI Never burns, deeply pigmented 115 min

UV through the day

UV index by month and hour in Europe/London 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
Mar 1 1 2 2 2 1 1
Apr 1 1 2 3 3 4 3 2 2 1
May 1 1 2 3 4 5 5 4 4 3 2 1
Jun 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2 1
Jul 1 1 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2 1
Aug 1 2 3 4 5 5 4 4 2 1 1
Sep 1 2 2 3 3 3 2 1
Oct 1 1 1 1 1 1
Nov
Dec

none strongest

Other cities in United Kingdom

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