Hours of daylight

[bandit and babycakes]

I am trying to get an idea exactly when the sun goes down in Alaska in the middle of August and how dark does it really get. According to a Fairbanks weather site sun rises at 5:24 am and sunset at 10:30 pm. Is that about right? I thought it was daylight much longer.

thanks

[PennyAgain]

The Solstice also known as the Midnight Sun happens around the date of June 21-22. As the weeks past toward the winter season, the nights get longer (and the days shorter).

 

Because Alaska is such a big state, the hours of daylight are different in Fairbanks and in Juneau and along the way between the 2.

[mr green]

That sounds about right. Remember, by mid Aug. the days ARE getting shorter.

 

john

[rdnpdx1]

I am trying to get an idea exactly when the sun goes down in Alaska in the middle of August and how dark does it really get. According to a Fairbanks weather site sun rises at 5:24 am and sunset at 10:30 pm. Is that about right? I thought it was daylight much longer.

thanks

 

Definitely sounds about right. Remember, by mid-August you are almost two months after the summer solstice, over halfway to the fall equinox when everybody gets 12/12 day and night. According to your information you are still getting 17 hours of daylight. In June they probably had 21-22 hours of daylight.

[fleckle]

I am trying to get an idea exactly when the sun goes down in Alaska in the middle of August and how dark does it really get. According to a Fairbanks weather site sun rises at 5:24 am and sunset at 10:30 pm. Is that about right? I thought it was daylight much longer.

That looks about right according to this site also.

 

Complete Sun and Moon Data for One Day

[MightyQuinn]

I am trying to get an idea exactly when the sun goes down in Alaska in the middle of August and how dark does it really get.

Check out this site.

http://sunrisesunset.com/USA/Alaska.asp

Enter your Alaska location and desired month and you'll be able to create a calendar with daily sunrise and sunset times. No guessing!

[PennyAgain]

Another factor in Alaska is that the time zones are not as accurate as they are in the Lower 48. The Alaskan time zones have been fudged to give commercial advantages where possible.

 

That can result in some pretty weird Sunset Sunrise charts especially for the equinox.Same number of hours of daylight but the clock hours are often strange.

[arizonaperson]

So if you are on a land tour/AK cruise at the end of August begining of September sunset is around 9pm give or take a few minutes.(this would be for Denali area) The further south you go like Ketchikan sunset would be around 7:45pm.

[PennyAgain]

Well more or less. Clouds can affect when the light goes dim.

 

Alaska has long and lingering sunsets unlike what you have at the Equator when the sun disappears (apparently) quickly.

 

Also (to write from my own experience) as the sun moves toward the Equator its position in Alaska is much lower in the sky. The intensity of the light changes and the sun gives off less warmth. This is when Alaskans start to get glum.

 

The elder members of my family start getting glum soon after the Solstice and get darned depressed by the time the fireweed comes all the way to the top. As the signs of oncoming winter become more obvious, they tire more easily and seem to enjoy things much less.

 

However, if they make it through the winter, as the days lengthen after the winter Solstice, they perk up.

 

We hope!

 

The angle of the sunlight affects not only one's mood, but photography.

[Budget Queen]

Another important factor with "sun rises/sun sets" is the extended twilight. It might be a few minutes in the lower 48, it can be 30 in Fairbanks.