EarthSky | Earliest sunset comes before winter solstice

Earliest sundown isn’t on the shortest day

For the southernmost U.S. and comparable latitudes – round 30 degrees north latitude – the earliest sunsets of the 12 months are taking place round now. As a result of they arrive in late November and early December. For latitudes farther north – round 40 degrees north latitude – the 12 months’s earliest sunsets will occur within the coming week, the week of December 5, 2022. For example, that will be the latitude of New York Metropolis; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Kansas Metropolis, Missouri; Denver, Colorado; Reno, Nevada; Beijing, China; Madrid, Spain; and Naples, Italy.

In the meantime, what concerning the Southern Hemisphere? At this similar time, for 40 degrees south latitude, the 12 months’s earliest sunrises occur this week, as you progress towards your longest day on the December solstice.

Then, nearer to the Arctic and Antarctic Circles, the earliest sundown and earliest dawn occur nearer the solstice.

Wish to know the date of your earliest sundown (or dawn)? Sunrise-sunset.org provides the sunrise/sunset times to the second, for areas across the globe.

Actually, the precise date of the Northern Hemisphere’s earliest sundown and the Southern Hemisphere’s earliest dawn varies by latitude.

However, at temperate latitudes, each of those annual hallmarks in our sky come just a few to a number of weeks earlier than the December solstice, not on the solstice as you would possibly anticipate.

Available now! 2023 EarthSky lunar calendar. A unique and beautiful poster-sized calendar showing phases of the moon every night of the year! And it makes a great gift.

Why?

The subsequent solstice in 2022 comes at 21:48 UTC on December 21 and marks an unofficial starting for winter within the Northern Hemisphere. So for the Northern Hemisphere, this upcoming solstice brings the shortest day and longest night time of the 12 months. Then why isn’t the earliest sundown on the 12 months’s shortest day?

Mainly, it’s due to the discrepancy between the clock and the sun. The very fact is, a clock ticks off precisely 24 hours from one midday to the following. However an precise day – as measured by the spin of the Earth, from what known as one “solar midday” to the following – hardly ever equals 24 hours precisely.

Additionally, solar midday is just referred to as noon. As a result of it refers to that prompt when the sun reaches its highest level for the day. Thus, within the month of December, the time interval from one solar midday to the following is definitely half a minute longer than 24 hours. For instance, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on December 7, the sun reaches its noontime place at 11:52 a.m. native customary time. Then, two weeks later – on the winter solstice – the sun will attain its noontime place round 11:58 a.m. In order that’s 6 minutes later than on December 7.

Go to Sunrise Sunset Calendars to know the clock time for dawn, solar midday and sundown plus day size in your a part of the world, remembering to test the solar midday and day size bins.

One other key level, the later clock time for solar midday means a later clock time for dawn and sundown. As could be seen within the desk beneath.

For Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Newest dawn and earliest sundown aren’t on the solstice

As you may need guessed, the newest sunrises aren’t on the day of the solstice both. So for center latitudes within the Northern Hemisphere, the newest sunrises are available early January.

Nevertheless, there’s variation within the precise dates, however the sequence is all the time the identical for each hemispheres. First, earliest sundown earlier than the winter solstice, the winter solstice itself, newest dawn after the winter solstice. Then, half a 12 months later: earliest dawn earlier than the summer time solstice, the summer time solstice itself, newest sundown.

So by all means, try the earliest and newest sunsets and sunrises in your space. As a result of they’re all the time beautiful and occur round each solstice.

Sunsets from the EarthSky Group

Backside line: The solstice comes on December 21, 2022, at 21:48 UTC. However the earliest sunsets at mid-northern latitudes – say, 40 levels north latitude – occur on and round December 6 or 7. Whereas, latitudes nearer to the equator had their earliest sunsets in late November, or earlier in December. After which latitudes nearer to the Arctic Circle can have their earliest sunsets nearer to the December solstice.

Solstice tale of two cities: New York, New York, and St. Augustine, Florida

Planet-observing is easy: Top tips here

EarthSky’s monthly planet guide: Visible planets and more