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Vivid Glacier

#48b9f8
Notes

Vivid Glacier (#48B9F8) is a true azure with a neon character. It sits at the high-saturation edge of its family. Use it sparingly, as signage, accent, or highlight against darker surfaces. Its HSL profile (201°, 93%, 63%) places it in the highly saturated band at a mid lightness. Best used in small doses, like logos, CTAs, focus rings, or highlight text, where its saturation becomes a feature rather than noise. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary orange. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#48b9f8
RGB
rgb(72, 185, 248)
HSL
hsl(201, 93%, 63%)
HWB
hwb(201 28% 3%)
OKLCH
oklch(74.8% 0.135 237.2)
HSV
hsv(201, 71%, 97%)
LAB
lab(71.45% -12.00 -40.41)
LCH
lch(71.45% 42.15 253.45)
CMYK
cmyk(71%, 25%, 0%, 3%)

Etymology

Vivid
adjective

From the Latin vividus, full of life — used as a color modifier since the late sixteenth century for hues that read as luminous and saturated. Vivid red, vivid blue: the implication is that the color appears almost lit from within, with the optical brightness of a high-chroma surface in good light. Sits at the bright-bucket center alongside bright and electric.

Glacier
noun

A compressed mass of ice that has accumulated over decades or centuries — Alpine, Andean, Patagonian, polar. The color refers to the exposed face of a clean glacier where compression has driven out the air: a soft, very pale blue-green with the optical clarity of dense ice. Lighter than aqua, cooler than seafoam, with the high-altitude weight of a landform now retreating across most of the planet.

Closest matches

The nearest named color in three reference sources, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE76 in CIELAB). ΔE < 1 is imperceptible to most viewers; ΔE > 10 is clearly different. When two sources point to the same hex they’re merged into one tile; click any to open that color’s page.

Variations

Click any swatch to explore

Harmonies

Accessibility

Color-vision simulation

How this color appears to viewers with the four major color-vision-deficiency types. Computed via the Machado (2009) physiologically-based model. If a tile matches the original, the color reads the same to that viewer.

#48b9f8
Original
#9bb8fb
Protanopia
#83a7f7
Deuteranopia
#00c9cf
Tritanopia
#a6a6a6
Achromatopsia
WCAG contrast

The color used as foreground text against pure white and pure black, with the contrast ratio and WCAG 2.1 grade. Aim for AA (4.5:1) for body text and AA Large (3:1) for 18 pt+ headlines; AAA (7:1) is the gold standard for long-form reading surfaces.

The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
Failon White
2.19:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAAon Black
9.57:1

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