Ever notice how BRIGHT your white t-shirt looks in direct sun? That’s because mom washed with fluorescent laundry soap (no kidding!). The soap manufacturers put in dyes that glow white under a UV light, which make your clothes appear whiter than they really are.
Since light is a form of energy, in order for things to glow in the dark, you have to add energy first. So where does the energy come from? There are are few different ways to do this:
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Most hard candy spark when you chew them but the lifesaver one is one you can actually see! The effect is called triboluminescence which is similar to the gigantic electric charge that generates lightning, just on a smaller scale. When you bit the candy, it forces some of the electrons out of their atoms. These free electrons bump into nitrogen molecules int he air and when they smack into them the nitrogen releases energy in the form of light (mostly UV, which isn’t visible). It happens on such a quick and small scale that temperature doesn’t have time to heat up your mouth. It’s the same thing that happens when you scuff your feet along the carpet or pull a piece of tape off a roll.
Hope this helps!
Aurora
My 6 year old son had a question about the “lighting storm” created by friction using winter green life savers: He asked “How do you not burn your mouth while doing this experiment?
Wow…cool!
Scorpions also have an exoskeleton that glows in black light. (Even when they’re dead.) So if you live somewhere with scorpions you can hunt for them at night if you’re brave enough!