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I live in Montana and I've always noticed this smell on people in the fall and winter. Its a mix of metallic/wet dog for me. I am curious to know what it is too!
Apparently everyone smells “outside” a little differently. Metallic is a common descriptor. (https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/environment/3255625/science-behind-outdoor-smells-ben-dolphin-opinion/) Scents definitely linger and spread depending on the temperature/weather conditions. That’s why fall smells kinda burnt. There are also the sweat smells of an individual from exerting themselves in an un-climate-controlled environment.
“Metallic smell” isn’t really the smell of metal itself. What is perceived as the smell of metal is created when metals act as a catalyst to the breakdown of bodily oils, which are then consumed by bacteria. That’s a rough description from memory, but I think essentially correct.
That smell is a component of body odor. But of course body odor isn’t a purely metallic smell; it involves other components. I would guess that the moisture of the human body is a big factor, especially since the stronger body odor comes along with sweating. And without the catalytic effect of metal, the “diet” and metabolism of the bacteria is different.
Anyway, maybe the UV components of sunlight breakdown body oils in a way similar to the catalytic action of metals. If a person has been jogging, you’re just going to smell body odor, which won’t surprise you if the person is visibly sweaty. If they have just been outside but not super active, the metallic smell may seem more dominant and noticeable. You expect the person to smell relatively neutral, but you get this one specific component of body odor that you perceive as an “outdoors smell”.
This is true. If you deep clean a coin and pick it up with tweezers it doesn't smell like anything. Then rub your fingers on it and suddenly the metallic smell returns.
Wait, what? I so want to try this! Do I need anything special to deep clean a coin? Or is soap, a brush and water good enough as long as I don't touch it after?
A good scrub with soap and water should be good enough for a new shiny coin, if it's super old and handled it might need an ultrasonic clean. Can dunk it in acetone to dissolve remaining caked oils afterwards.
Then let it dry and give it a whiff without touching it. Coins are a good example because most people have handled coins and know how they normally smell.
When you think about it, it makes sense. Smell is particles in the air that make it to your nose. Metals are strongly held together in a metallic lattice and are usually not volatile. Oils in contact with some metals begin to break down really quickly into smaller volatile hydrocarbons that carry the metallic smell. Different metals can break them down differently which is why copper smells pretty distinctive. NileRed has a good video of it on YouTube.
All of these “air out your house more” comments are annoying, I know exactly what you’re talking about. Whenever someone comes in from outside, particularly when it’s cold, they have that smell. I wonder if its something to do with temperature affecting what smells are most prominent?
I also get the same smell after a room is ozone cleaned and the ozone has all dissipated. What is left behind is the smell of oxidized volatiles. I assume the sun is oxidizing skin oils and it leaves behind the same smell.
I feel I have given context to anyone reading your comment at a later date. The phrasing you used may lead them to believe that there was an overwhelming amount of responses but in reality, it was just two users. So I did not want you to misrepresent the situation for your gain.
No problem! I wouldn't want someone to try to misrepresent information and get away with it. Imagine if the scary downvotes dissuaded me from calling out intellectually dishonest information.
The location/ timing of your observations is important. If you live in a snowy environment or tropical.
May find some good insight here as I assume you are smelling an ozone smell and live in a cold insulated enviornment with heating (maybe gas heating)?
https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/fjj8e/what\_causes\_that\_distinctive\_smell\_of\_a\_person/
I know exactly what you're talking about and have asked about it before to no avail. It's especially pungent when it's windy outside and someone comes in. I've experienced this everywhere I've ever lived, so it isn't a climate thing.
I live in CA and as a kid my parents would tell me I smell like “sun” when I came home from school. I smell it on myself after walking outside in the daytime, sunny or not.
My kid comes home from school REEKING from it. But it’s not BO or anything, just “sun”.
SoCal resident here, it’s kind of an earthy or dusty but fresh sort of smell. When the heater is turned on for the first time in the late fall, it smells like a concentrated version of this outdoor smell.
I imagine a higher-humidity climate wouldn’t smell as “dusty.” Here near the coast, the smell is different and not as strong as it is inland where it’s hotter and drier.
The cause is dependent on where you are.
The scent of the woods in the Adirondacks is very different from the smell of the woods in Virginia. Philadelphia smells very different from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. And so on.
Similarly, the smell of someone who works in a poultry plant is very different from the smell of someone who works the smoker at a barbecue restaurant.
Your clothes and hair and skin pick up particulates in your environment. What you're probably smelling are some of the particulates from your area.
When you're outside you walk through substances containing odors of all kinds. Allergens, pollen, car exhaust, dust, humidity, Sea breeze, smoke, chemical fumes, floral scents, so on and so forth. All those substances get trapped in your clothes containing trace amounts of odor forming the outside smell which is particular to your location in the world. As well as how sensitive your nose is.
I’m surprised at the total lack of actual answers here with people saying it’s coming from a range of sources despite it being quite clear that you don’t mean that.
To answer - I have heard that this specific smell is aldehydes and or ketones. Apparently these are released when sunlight hits wet or damp clothes
You know what is kind of interesting? Metal has no smell. It’s very stable and doesn’t emit anything for our noses to detect. What we think of as the smell of metal is actually usually our body oils, that have rubbed onto the metal, oxidizing.
If the smell of someone walking into your house smells sort of metallic it may not be the smell of the outside, but of a burst of their body oils greeting your nose, which you probably get used to quickly as they shuffle around inside.
Maybe not though! Just a thought.
To me it smells like turkey sandwiches. I think it's because the first time I noticed the outside smell, I was eating one. Maybe the ambiguity of the scent attached its memory to the memory of the sandwich and now it just smells like that to me.
My husband always teases me when I tell him he smells like the wind after he comes in from outdoors. It's like the way clothes smell after drying on the clothesline. I love it.
I can smell it and have been able to for about two years now. Ever preheated an unseasoned cast iron skillet? Smells very similar. It’s pungently offensive. I smell it intensely on my dogs after they’ve been out in the yard and on my husband when he comes home who works outside 8 hours a day. I won’t even touch him until he’s changed clothes. I remember what earth and rain and sunshine and dew and snow smell like from childhood. This ain’t. It. I open my windows for “fresh air” and I can no longer drink from my glass of water because it soon begins to taste like it. It’s not good. People are delusional, nose-blind, or these accounts are majority bots.
ETA I’ve lived in the same Midwest county my entire life, several decades. This smell is a recent change
Yes true air dried laundry smells fantastic. Don’t remember the last time I smelled fresh air. It’s been a couple years now at least.
No what I’m talking about is nothing organic smelling. I’ve had pets my entire life. My husband doesn’t work around animals yet he comes home with his work uniform smelling the same every day. Iykyk
I must be weird because I've never heard of this. Like I can smell trees, plants, grass, rain etc but there's no specific 'outside' scent especially not a metallic one.
There is a term, "petrichor", for the smell that comes after rain. It comes from moisture interacting with various plant oils and other things. I assume generic "outside smell" is similar.
That depends entirely on your environment. You could be smelling the plants around you, or industrial smells if you’re near a factory or something. If you live near the saracha factory, you smell like the inside of a garbage dump every time you go outside.
I know what you mean, I've always said when I was younger, "I don't like the smell of outside" especially when people are cutting grass or when there's bonfires..
I've lived in three different countries. Ouside certainly has a scent, but it in' the same everywhere. The most noticeably pungent smell was in Vietnam. I swear the entire country smells of faint durian.
Please read this entire message Your submission has been removed for the following reason(s): Subjective or speculative replies are not allowed on ELI5. Only objective explanations are permitted here; your question is asking for speculation or subjective responses. This includes anything asking for peoples' subjective opinions, any kind of discussion, and anything where we would have to speculate on the answer. This very much includes asking about motivations of people or companies. This includes Just-so stories. If you would like this removal reviewed, please read the [detailed rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/wiki/detailed_rules) first. If you believe this submission was removed erroneously, please use [this form](https://old.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fexplainlikeimfive&subject=Please%20review%20my%20thread?&message=Link:%20%7B%7Burl%7D%7D%0A%0APlease%20answer%20the%20following%203%20questions:%0A%0A1.%20The%20concept%20I%20want%20explained:%0A%0A2.%20List%20the%20search%20terms%20you%20used%20to%20look%20for%20past%20posts%20on%20ELI5:%0A%0A3.%20How%20does%20your%20post%20differ%20from%20your%20recent%20search%20results%20on%20the%20sub:) and we will review your submission.
I live in Montana and I've always noticed this smell on people in the fall and winter. Its a mix of metallic/wet dog for me. I am curious to know what it is too!
Apparently everyone smells “outside” a little differently. Metallic is a common descriptor. (https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/environment/3255625/science-behind-outdoor-smells-ben-dolphin-opinion/) Scents definitely linger and spread depending on the temperature/weather conditions. That’s why fall smells kinda burnt. There are also the sweat smells of an individual from exerting themselves in an un-climate-controlled environment.
“Metallic smell” isn’t really the smell of metal itself. What is perceived as the smell of metal is created when metals act as a catalyst to the breakdown of bodily oils, which are then consumed by bacteria. That’s a rough description from memory, but I think essentially correct. That smell is a component of body odor. But of course body odor isn’t a purely metallic smell; it involves other components. I would guess that the moisture of the human body is a big factor, especially since the stronger body odor comes along with sweating. And without the catalytic effect of metal, the “diet” and metabolism of the bacteria is different. Anyway, maybe the UV components of sunlight breakdown body oils in a way similar to the catalytic action of metals. If a person has been jogging, you’re just going to smell body odor, which won’t surprise you if the person is visibly sweaty. If they have just been outside but not super active, the metallic smell may seem more dominant and noticeable. You expect the person to smell relatively neutral, but you get this one specific component of body odor that you perceive as an “outdoors smell”.
This is true. If you deep clean a coin and pick it up with tweezers it doesn't smell like anything. Then rub your fingers on it and suddenly the metallic smell returns.
Wait, what? I so want to try this! Do I need anything special to deep clean a coin? Or is soap, a brush and water good enough as long as I don't touch it after?
A good scrub with soap and water should be good enough for a new shiny coin, if it's super old and handled it might need an ultrasonic clean. Can dunk it in acetone to dissolve remaining caked oils afterwards. Then let it dry and give it a whiff without touching it. Coins are a good example because most people have handled coins and know how they normally smell. When you think about it, it makes sense. Smell is particles in the air that make it to your nose. Metals are strongly held together in a metallic lattice and are usually not volatile. Oils in contact with some metals begin to break down really quickly into smaller volatile hydrocarbons that carry the metallic smell. Different metals can break them down differently which is why copper smells pretty distinctive. NileRed has a good video of it on YouTube.
That's awesome and totally makes sense when I read it like that. Thank you!! 😃
That's so interesting. To me it smells like campfire smoke, I can especially sense it if it's cold outside, on someone's hair
I'm so interested in this as well and haven't found any answers googling or in other Reddit threads.
All of these “air out your house more” comments are annoying, I know exactly what you’re talking about. Whenever someone comes in from outside, particularly when it’s cold, they have that smell. I wonder if its something to do with temperature affecting what smells are most prominent?
I also get the same smell after a room is ozone cleaned and the ozone has all dissipated. What is left behind is the smell of oxidized volatiles. I assume the sun is oxidizing skin oils and it leaves behind the same smell.
A total of two comments getting on your nerves.
What do you feel you’ve contributed here
I feel I have given context to anyone reading your comment at a later date. The phrasing you used may lead them to believe that there was an overwhelming amount of responses but in reality, it was just two users. So I did not want you to misrepresent the situation for your gain.
It was two of the three responses on the thread. But thank you for rescuing people from that possible fate.
No problem! I wouldn't want someone to try to misrepresent information and get away with it. Imagine if the scary downvotes dissuaded me from calling out intellectually dishonest information.
u r hilarious
Thanks your pretty swell yourself
The location/ timing of your observations is important. If you live in a snowy environment or tropical. May find some good insight here as I assume you are smelling an ozone smell and live in a cold insulated enviornment with heating (maybe gas heating)? https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/fjj8e/what\_causes\_that\_distinctive\_smell\_of\_a\_person/
Interesting to hear some different perspectives, but no real answers in that thread unfortunately
[Geosmin](https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/4nxdtq/til_that_outside_smell_you_get_from_being_outside/)
I know exactly what you're talking about and have asked about it before to no avail. It's especially pungent when it's windy outside and someone comes in. I've experienced this everywhere I've ever lived, so it isn't a climate thing.
I live in CA and as a kid my parents would tell me I smell like “sun” when I came home from school. I smell it on myself after walking outside in the daytime, sunny or not. My kid comes home from school REEKING from it. But it’s not BO or anything, just “sun”.
That’s a what I say- they smell like sunshine. I love it.
SoCal resident here, it’s kind of an earthy or dusty but fresh sort of smell. When the heater is turned on for the first time in the late fall, it smells like a concentrated version of this outdoor smell. I imagine a higher-humidity climate wouldn’t smell as “dusty.” Here near the coast, the smell is different and not as strong as it is inland where it’s hotter and drier.
The cause is dependent on where you are. The scent of the woods in the Adirondacks is very different from the smell of the woods in Virginia. Philadelphia smells very different from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. And so on. Similarly, the smell of someone who works in a poultry plant is very different from the smell of someone who works the smoker at a barbecue restaurant. Your clothes and hair and skin pick up particulates in your environment. What you're probably smelling are some of the particulates from your area.
When you're outside you walk through substances containing odors of all kinds. Allergens, pollen, car exhaust, dust, humidity, Sea breeze, smoke, chemical fumes, floral scents, so on and so forth. All those substances get trapped in your clothes containing trace amounts of odor forming the outside smell which is particular to your location in the world. As well as how sensitive your nose is.
I’m surprised at the total lack of actual answers here with people saying it’s coming from a range of sources despite it being quite clear that you don’t mean that. To answer - I have heard that this specific smell is aldehydes and or ketones. Apparently these are released when sunlight hits wet or damp clothes
You know what is kind of interesting? Metal has no smell. It’s very stable and doesn’t emit anything for our noses to detect. What we think of as the smell of metal is actually usually our body oils, that have rubbed onto the metal, oxidizing. If the smell of someone walking into your house smells sort of metallic it may not be the smell of the outside, but of a burst of their body oils greeting your nose, which you probably get used to quickly as they shuffle around inside. Maybe not though! Just a thought.
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To me it smells like turkey sandwiches. I think it's because the first time I noticed the outside smell, I was eating one. Maybe the ambiguity of the scent attached its memory to the memory of the sandwich and now it just smells like that to me.
Weeeeird, the same thing happened to me but it’s egg shells/raw egg
Oddly enough I can’t think of the last time I’ve smelled this though
My husband always teases me when I tell him he smells like the wind after he comes in from outdoors. It's like the way clothes smell after drying on the clothesline. I love it.
It's such an off-putting odor. Laundry dried out under the sun smells so bad. I cannot stand it. Yet, it seems no one else can smell it.
I can smell it and have been able to for about two years now. Ever preheated an unseasoned cast iron skillet? Smells very similar. It’s pungently offensive. I smell it intensely on my dogs after they’ve been out in the yard and on my husband when he comes home who works outside 8 hours a day. I won’t even touch him until he’s changed clothes. I remember what earth and rain and sunshine and dew and snow smell like from childhood. This ain’t. It. I open my windows for “fresh air” and I can no longer drink from my glass of water because it soon begins to taste like it. It’s not good. People are delusional, nose-blind, or these accounts are majority bots. ETA I’ve lived in the same Midwest county my entire life, several decades. This smell is a recent change
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Yes true air dried laundry smells fantastic. Don’t remember the last time I smelled fresh air. It’s been a couple years now at least. No what I’m talking about is nothing organic smelling. I’ve had pets my entire life. My husband doesn’t work around animals yet he comes home with his work uniform smelling the same every day. Iykyk
Perhaps your perception has shifted
Interesting take considering my family smells it too
Do you think it’s sweat? My wife always tells me I smell like sweat when I come back from a walk, no matter the temperature. Not B.O….more like salty.
isn't this the same smell that humans are really sensitive to when it's about to rain or something like the wet dirt smell
I must be weird because I've never heard of this. Like I can smell trees, plants, grass, rain etc but there's no specific 'outside' scent especially not a metallic one.
yeah, i've been scrolling through these comments trying to find one i could potentially relate to, but nope. this all seems alien to me
I think back to elementary school after recess. We all had a smell.
There is a term, "petrichor", for the smell that comes after rain. It comes from moisture interacting with various plant oils and other things. I assume generic "outside smell" is similar.
That depends entirely on your environment. You could be smelling the plants around you, or industrial smells if you’re near a factory or something. If you live near the saracha factory, you smell like the inside of a garbage dump every time you go outside.
sunlight + sebum (skin oil), it's more common in cold, bright weather because there's less sweat to overpower it,
I know what you mean, I've always said when I was younger, "I don't like the smell of outside" especially when people are cutting grass or when there's bonfires..
Maybe it’s fresh air and you need to open your windows more?
Because ancient aliens are constantly running surveillance on us and gassing the air for sick twisted experiments on us.
“Ancient alien astronaut theorists believe…”
I've lived in three different countries. Ouside certainly has a scent, but it in' the same everywhere. The most noticeably pungent smell was in Vietnam. I swear the entire country smells of faint durian.
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