Oceanic I: what light survives

Oceanic I: the light that survives here peaks at 470 nm, Secchi depth about 33 m. Which lure colour stands out, computed rather than charted.

Light that survives best here: 470 nm

Secchi ≈ 33 m

What this water lets through

K_d is the diffuse attenuation of the light coming down; c is the beam attenuation along the line of sight. Confusing the two is the classic error in this field.

λ	K_d	c	1 m	5 m
400 nm	0.032	0.072	96.9%	85.21%
430 nm	0.027	0.063	97.3%	87.32%
460 nm	0.023	0.057	97.7%	88.95%
490 nm	0.025	0.055	97.6%	88.40%
520 nm	0.051	0.075	95.0%	77.32%
550 nm	0.070	0.088	93.3%	70.61%
580 nm	0.108	0.120	89.7%	58.16%
610 nm	0.314	0.293	73.1%	20.82%
640 nm	0.368	0.338	69.2%	15.86%
670 nm	0.519	0.464	59.5%	7.46%
700 nm	0.737	0.648	47.9%	2.52%

K_d is the diffuse attenuation of the light coming down; c is the beam attenuation along the line of sight. Confusing the two is the classic error in this field. Method and sources

Lure table

Ranked by how much each colour stands out to a European hake in these conditions.

	Colour	Contrast	Seen from
1	White	98	48 m	Buy now
2	Silver holographic Metallic finish	96	47 m	Buy now
3	Sexy shad	95	48 m	Buy now
4	Glow Glow finish — not modelled	95	47 m	Buy now
5	Bone	94	45 m	Buy now
6	Chrome Metallic finish	93	45 m	Buy now
7	Chartreuse / white Fluorescent finish	92	48 m	Buy now
8	Blue / white	91	48 m	Buy now
Stands out least
	Brown	36	14 m
	Brown / orange	35	14 m
	Orange craw	34	14 m
	Fluorescent orange	26	11 m

Contrast quoted at 1.0 m viewing distance. · Light that survives best here: 470 nm

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Target species

European hake Merluccius merluccius Bonefish Albula vulpes Great barracuda Sphyraena barracuda Atlantic bluefin tuna Thunnus thynnus Yellowfin tuna Thunnus albacares Skipjack tuna Katsuwonus pelamis Mahi-mahi Coryphaena hippurus Atlantic sailfish Istiophorus albicans Blue marlin Makaira nigricans Swordfish Xiphias gladius Blue shark Prionace glauca

Open the calculator

Gear this page implies

A Secchi disc See on Amazon
Lower it until it disappears and read the depth. That single number tells you which water type above is yours — it is the one optical measurement anybody can take.

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