The Longest Day of the Year

The Longest Day of the Year
On or around June 21 each year, the rays of the sun will be perpendicular to the Tropic of Cancer at 23°30' North latitude. This day is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.

On this day, the earth's "circle of illumination" will be from the Arctic Circle on the far side of the earth (in relation to the sun) to the Antarctic Circle on the near side of the earth. The equator receives twelve hours of daylight, there's 24 hours of daylight at the North Pole and areas north of 66°30' N, and there's 24 hours of darkness at the South Pole and areas south of 66°30' S.

June 20-21 is start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere but simultaneously the start of winter in the Southern Hemisphere. It's also the longest day of sunlight for places in the Northern Hemisphere and the shortest day for cities south of the equator.

However, June 20-21 is not the day when the sun rises earliest in the morning nor when it sets latest at night. As we'll see - the date of earliest sunrise or sunset varies from location to location.

We'll start our tour of the solstice in the north, with Anchorage, Alaska and head south in the U.S. and then move on to international cities. It's interesting to compare the difference in sunrise and sunset in various locales around the globe.

Anchorage, Alaska

On June 21, the sun rises in Anchorage at 4:20 a.m. and sets at 11:42 p.m. The earliest sunrise Anchorage experiences is at 4:20 a.m. but lasts from June 15 through June 23. The latest sunset also corresponds to the solstice sunset at 11:42 p.m. but lasts from June 21 through June 26.

Seattle, Washington

The solstice in Seattle experiences a sunrise at 5:11 a.m. and sunset at 9:10 p.m. The earliest sunrise of 5:10 a.m. lasts from June 13-18. The maximum sunset of 9:10 p.m. lasts from June 20 through July 2.

Portland, Oregon

Portland's solstice sunrise and sunset correspond precisely with its latest sunrise and sunset of 5:21 a.m. and 9:03 p.m. The maximums last from June 10-21 and June 21-July 2 respectively.

New York City, New York

The Big Apple sees the sun rise at 5:24 a.m. on June 21 and set at 8:30 p.m. Maximums are one minute off - 5:23 a.m. from June 12-17 and 8:31 from June 22-July 3.

Sacramento, California

On June 21, Sacramento's sunrise is at 5:42 a.m. and its sunset is at 8:33 p.m. The maximums are each one minute off of the solstice times. The earliest sunrise in Sacramento is 5:41 a.m. which lasts from June 7-20 and the latest sunset is at 8:34 p.m. from June 25-July 1.

Los Angeles, California

What a difference 400 miles makes! When I was a boy growing up in Sacramento, I remember my grandmother calling from Los Angeles on the telephone late on summer nights. She'd be upset that I was still out playing even when it was dark. Explaining that the sun had still not set in Sacramento was an impossible proposition.

Nonetheless, on June 21 the sun rises in L.A. at 5:41 a.m. and sets at 8:07 p.m., which would've given me a full 26 extra minutes of sun-lit play time! L.A.'s earliest sunrise is the same as the solstice and lasts from June 4-21 but the sunset is one minute later, 8:08 p.m. from June 28-July 1.

Miami, Florida

Miami experiences sunrise at 6:30 a.m. on the 21st and sunset at 8:14 p.m. It's maximums are 6:28 a.m. from June 6-12 and 8:16 p.m. from June 30-July 5.