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Phosphorescent Freya Turquoise

#4defe3
Notes

Phosphorescent Freya Turquoise (#4DEFE3) is a true cyan with a vibrant character. It holds its own as a focal accent, carrying visual weight without tipping into neon territory. Its HSL profile (176°, 84%, 62%) 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 red. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#4defe3
RGB
rgb(77, 239, 227)
HSL
hsl(176, 84%, 62%)
HWB
hwb(176 30% 6%)
OKLCH
oklch(86.7% 0.133 187.8)
HSV
hsv(176, 68%, 94%)
LAB
lab(86.43% -43.93 -6.41)
LCH
lch(86.43% 44.40 188.30)
CMYK
cmyk(68%, 0%, 5%, 6%)

Etymology

Phosphorescent
adjective

Greek phōsphóros, light-bringer — adjectival suffix -escent. As a color modifier, phosphorescent implies a saturated-and-cool-glow-after-stimulation quality, the bright cool-green-blue color of Cu-doped-ZnS glow-in-the-dark photoluminescent surfaces. Sits at the bright-and-cool end of the grid, parallel to fluorescent and luminous in usage.

Freya
modifier

Old Norse Freyja, goddess-of-love-and-Vanir. As a color modifier, freya implies a Vanir-goddess-and-feathered-cloak-and-Brísingamen quality, the visual register of Norse-Freya-and-Vanir-goddess hand-Vanir-goddess-and-feathered-cloak-and-Brísingamen Norse-Freya-and-Vanir-goddess-and-Brísingamen-amber-necklace freya-and-Vanir-goddess-and-feathered-cloak surfaces under Norse-Freya-and-Vanir-goddess-and-Brísingamen-amber-necklace Folkvang-and-Sessrúmnir-and-cat-drawn-chariot amber-necklace-light. Sits at the modifier-and-myth end of the grid, parallel to odin and vala in usage.

Turquoise
noun

The hydrated copper-aluminum phosphate mined in Persia and the American Southwest for thousands of years — the firuze of Iran, the chalchihuitl of Mesoamerica, the heart of Pueblo and Navajo silverwork. The color refers to a fine Sleeping Beauty turquoise from Arizona: a saturated, slightly green-shifted blue with the slight matrix of host-rock veining. Brighter than persian, lighter than cerulean.

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

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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.

#4defe3
Original
#e2e2e3
Protanopia
#cbd1e5
Deuteranopia
#00f5eb
Tritanopia
#cccccc
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
1.42:1
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
14.77:1

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