Sunglasses on your dash can spark a fire, and it's already happened once this summer.

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Canva/Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Services

Uncommon Fire Hazards

When I was a kid, I remember seeing in cartoons kids using magnifying glasses in the sunlight to spark a fire. I always thought this was an urban myth, but it turns out it's not, it can actually happen, and it can happen with more objects than just a magnifying glass.

According to Science Focus, the London Fire Brigade has responded to 125 fires over the last 5 years that were sparked by the sun's rays. They say even something as simple as a fish bowl, or a glass doorknob if the sun's rays pass through it in just the right way can cause smoldering which can then turn into a full-blown fire.

Canva

So why does this happen? Well it's a lot of sciencey jargon that I can't exactly explain myself, so I'll let Gone Outdoors explain:

Photons are the particles that carry visible light from the sun to the earth. They also contain energy in the form of heat. Through the use of a magnifying glass, the path of these photons are narrowed to a highly localized area (the dot of light that passes through the lens). This results in a concentration of heat that can reach incredibly high temperatures. If a high enough temperature is reached (somewhere around 450 degrees F), the kindling will smolder and begin to burn.

Magnifying glasses aren't the only type of glass that can cause this to happen, it turns out sunglasses can make it happen too.

Sunglasses Spark a Car Fire

Well, this has officially unlocked a new fear for me. Someone put their sunglasses on the dashboard of their car, and after a while the smoldering from the sun rays passing through the curved glass caused the dashboard to smolder and then catch fire.

Photo courtesy of Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service

Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Services took to Twitter with a post about a car fire they responded to, and the culprit? A pair of sunglasses sitting on the dashboard.

The sun has been strong but beware this can cause fire Earlier we attended a fire caused by sunglasses left on the dashboard. Make sure you keep reflective objects out of direct sunlight

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