How to Use reflectivity in a Sentence

reflectivity

noun
  • Plus, the microbes that grow on the particles might change their reflectivity, as well.
    — Matt Simon, Wired, 20 Oct. 2021
  • Painter said the snow’s high reflectivity slowed the initial melting.
    — Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2023
  • The brighter reflectivity seen may actually be sleet aloft in some places!
    — Leigh Morgan, al, 1 Feb. 2023
  • But even where plenty of ice remains the reflectivity of the surface is dropping.
    — Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024
  • Melting reduces the albedo, or reflectivity, of snow and ice, so the darker tone may be the result of that.
    — Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 30 Aug. 2013
  • To get there, designers explored concepts from those who train at night and found a common thread of reflectivity.
    — Tim Newcomb, Forbes, 8 Aug. 2022
  • This has a cooling effect, which encourages the buildup of more snow and ice, which results in more reflectivity, and so on.
    — Krista Stevens, Longreads, 9 Oct. 2024
  • Also, for the first time probably ever, someone seasoned their cast-iron pan to the point of reflectivity.
    — Li Goldstein, Bon Appétit, 27 Jan. 2023
  • Venus has a reflectivity (called its albedo ) of about 67%, and Jupiter is about 52%.
    — Phil Plait, Discover Magazine, 14 Mar. 2012
  • Before that, the agency said the bottom of the pool was black, and at times in its history water had been dyed to improve reflectivity.
    — Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 20 June 2026
  • The result is tone-on-tone depth with high reflectivity that feels dimensional without high contrast.
    — Amanda Le, InStyle, 5 Mar. 2026
  • The low gloss paint coatings increase heat reflectivity, thereby reducing heat levels on the roof.
    — Rachel Rothman, Good Housekeeping, 6 Apr. 2021
  • The subtle light reflectivity creates a diffused glow which is youth enhancing.
    — April Long, Town & Country, 26 Jan. 2023
  • This reflectivity is known as albedo, and Earth’s overall albedo has been decreasing for decades.
    — Ryan Green, Scientific American, 22 Oct. 2025
  • In the Antarctic, loss of sea ice also affects Earth’s reflectivity.
    — Chris Mooney, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Feb. 2023
  • The agency said the color would improve the pool's reflectivity compared to the existing gray concrete.
    — Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 8 June 2026
  • This suggests liquid water is unlikely in the high-reflectivity zone.
    — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 22 Nov. 2025
  • The reflectivity had faded, causing drivers to blow past them at intersections with poor lighting.
    — Ryan Gillespie, Orlando Sentinel, 25 Aug. 2022
  • Losing sea ice also changes the reflectivity of the waters around Antarctica.
    — Matt Simon, WIRED, 12 Jan. 2024
  • This is due to polar amplification—a process where melting snow and ice reduce the Earth’s reflectivity.
    — Hana Al-Khodairi, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Sep. 2025
  • Both reflectivity and emissivity depend on the wavelength of light.
    — Rhett Allain, WIRED, 25 Aug. 2023
  • Box and his colleagues are studying the impact of soot from wildfires and industry, and snow microbes as well, on the reflectivity of snow and ice in Greenland.
    — Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 30 Aug. 2014
  • Shaw said Utah’s rapid population growth is a contributor to wearing down the road reflectivity, along with the changes in weather.
    — Jordan Miller, The Salt Lake Tribune, 21 Dec. 2022
  • Changing the temperature changes lots about the Earth, from the reflectivity of sea ice to the stability of permafrost.
    — Joseph Howlett, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Stay clear of cement or glass materials due to maintenance challenges and reflectivity.
    — Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 25 Feb. 2026
  • This latest group of Starlink satellites will feature a brand new device designed to address the reflectivity problem.
    — Jennifer Leman, Popular Mechanics, 8 July 2020
  • Some are mirrorlike in their reflectivity, while others have none whatsoever.
    — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 19 June 2026
  • This would account for their exceedingly high reflectivity.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 9 June 2026
  • After the first few batches of satellites were launched in 2019, astronomers around the world raised concerns about the satellites’ reflectivity.
    — Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2024
  • The result is a constantly shifting reflectivity; at one moment the building looks like a faceted silver crystal and at another like an origami sculpture made of light.
    — Michael J. Lewis, WSJ, 26 Jan. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reflectivity.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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