sunbaked

Sunbaked is an adjective describing something that has been heated by the sun or dried by direct solar exposure. The term is commonly used for materials, surfaces, and landscapes that have undergone prolonged solar drying, producing a hard, dry, often pale or reddish-brown appearance.

In construction, sun-dried brick or adobe refers to earth or clay bricks that are formed and left to dry in the sun rather than being fired in a kiln. The method relies on evaporating moisture; it is inexpensive and energy-efficient but yields bricks with lower compressive strength and greater vulnerability to moisture and weathering. Sun-dried bricks have been used for centuries in arid and semi-arid regions, with mud-brick architecture documented in ancient Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, and parts of North Africa and the Americas.

In geology and soil science, sunbaked describes soils, crusts, or surfaces hardened by long exposure to solar radiation. Desiccation can produce surface crusts, cracks, and a sealed, compacted layer that reduces infiltration.

In everyday use, “sunbaked” can describe landscapes affected by heat, such as sunbaked plains or desert rocks, implying extreme dryness and glare.

Etymology: from sun + baked, with the sense rooted in the process of baking clay or soil through solar heat rather than oven or kiln firing.