Daylight Spectrum

(Figure 2, from Life Under the Sun, 2001, Yale University Press)

The spectrum of sunlight on earth, from 300 to 1100 nm, scanned in 1 nm steps with 2 nm bandwidth and recorded on a clear summer day (August 7, 1991) by Karl Hartmann and Wolfgang Kaufmann at 12:00 Central European Time on the flat roof of the Biologikum at Erlangen University, Germany.
spectrum
The wavelength maxima of biological responses discussed in Life Under the Sun are:

~260 nm: DNA damage, in vitro
~280 nm: Photo-degradation of isoalpha acids in beer
~310 nm: Sun burn
~380 nm: Genitalic photoreception in butterflies
~410 nm: Phototaxis in Dictyostelium slugs and amoebas
~450 nm: Phototropism in plants and Phycomyces
~475 nm: Gonyaulax bioluminescence
~505 nm: Human vision at low light levels
~555 nm: Human vision at high light levels
~568 nm: Photosynthesis in Halobacterium
~610 nm: Photophobic response and negative phototaxis in Stentor
~675 nm: Photosynthesis in land plants
~668 nm: Formation of the Pfr form of phytochrome
~730 nm: Formation of the Pr form of phytochrome

Peter A. Ensminger, ensmingr@twcny.rr.com
last updated: Sept 17, 2005

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