This is one of my favorite milestones. Thanks to the analemma, tonight's sunset (4:20 pm) is the earliest of the year in Chicago. Of course, the sunrise still gets later every day until January 4th. At least tomorrow we'll have just a smidge more evening light than we'll have today.
I can't remember the last time Chicago got all the way through October without a freezing day. This year, even by November 2nd, we still haven't officially had a freeze.
Also, tomorrow has Chicago's latest sunrise: 7:25 am. For those 33 years old and under, it's the latest sunrise ever. (During the 1973 energy crisis, Chicago didn't return to Standard Time in the fall.)
Delayed edit, 11:05pm: Moments after posting this, O'Hare recorded its first freezing temperature since April 16th.
It's time for the semi-annual update of the Evanston/Chicago sunrise chart. (You can get one for your own location at http://www.wx-now.com/Sunrise/SunriseChart.aspx.)
Date |
Significance |
Sunrise |
Sunset |
Daylight |
2007 |
1 Jul |
8:30pm sunset |
05:19 |
20:30 |
15:11 |
17 Jul |
5:30am sunrise |
05:30 |
20:24 |
14:54 |
9 Aug |
8pm sunset |
05:52 |
20:00 |
14:08 |
17 Aug |
6am sunrise |
06:00 |
19:49 |
13:48 |
29 Aug |
7:30pm sunset |
06:13 |
19:30 |
13:17 |
15 Sep |
6:30am sunrise; 7pm sunset |
06:30 |
18:59 |
12:28 |
23 Sep |
Equinox, 04:51 CDT |
06:39 |
18:47 |
12:08 |
26 Sep |
12-hour day |
06:42 |
18:42 |
12:00 |
3 Oct |
6:30pm sunset |
06:49 |
18:29 |
11:39 |
13 Oct |
7am sunrise |
07:01 |
18:13 |
11:12 |
21 Oct |
6pm sunset |
07:10 |
18:00 |
10:50 |
3 Nov |
Latest sunrise of the year Latest sunset until Mar 2nd |
07:25 |
17:43 |
10:17 |
4 Nov |
Standard time returns Earliest sunrise until Feb 29th |
06:27 |
16:41 |
10:14 |
7 Nov |
6:30am sunrise (again) |
06:30 |
16:38 |
10:07 |
15 Nov |
4:30pm sunset |
06:40 |
16:30 |
9:49 |
2 Dec |
7am sunrise |
07:00 |
16:20 |
9:20 |
8 Dec |
Earliest sunset of the year |
07:06 |
16:20 |
9:13 |
21 Dec |
Solstice, 18:08 CST |
07:15 |
16:22 |
9:06 |
2008 |
4 Jan |
Latest sunrise until Oct 28 |
07:19 |
16:33 |
9:13 |
28 Jan |
5pm sunset |
07:08 |
17:00 |
9:52 |
5 Feb |
7am sunrise |
07:00 |
17:11 |
10:10 |
20 Feb |
5:30pm sunset |
06:40 |
17:30 |
10:49 |
27 Feb |
6:30am sunrise |
06:30 |
17:38 |
11:08 |
8 Mar |
Earliest sunrise until April 12th Earliest sunset until Oct 28th |
06:14 |
17:50 |
11:36 |
9 Mar |
Daylight savings time begins Latest sunrise until Oct 22nd |
07:12 |
18:51 |
11:39 |
16 Mar |
7am sunrise, 7pm sunset 12-hour day |
07:00 |
19:00 |
12:00 |
20 Mar |
Equinox 00:48 CDT |
06:54 |
19:04 |
12:10 |
3 Apr |
6:30am sunrise (again) |
06:30 |
19:20 |
12:50 |
12 Apr |
7:30pm sunset |
06:15 |
19:30 |
13:15 |
21 Apr |
6am sunrise |
06:00 |
19:40 |
13:39 |
10 May |
8pm sunset |
05:35 |
20:01 |
14:25 |
15 May |
5:30am sunrise |
05:30 |
20:06 |
14:35 |
14 Jun |
Earliest sunrise of the year |
05:15 |
20:29 |
15:13 |
18 Jun |
8:30pm sunset |
05:15 |
20:30 |
15:14 |
20 Jun |
Solstice 18:59 CDT |
05:15 |
20:30 |
15:15 |
27 Jun |
Latest sunset of the year |
05:17 |
20:31 |
15:13 |
You can get sunrise information for your location at wx-now.com.
The June Solstice happens in 15 minutes, at 1:06pm CDT. Happy Summer! (Or, you know, winter, for the one-third of the world who live in the Southern Hemisphere.)
The clouds broke this evening just long enough for me to see the eclipse. As they say in Boston: wicked cool.
The eclipse will be total from 4:44 pm CT to 5:58 pm, so when the moon rises over Chicago at 5:39 pm it will appear a deep red. (If it appears at all, of course; the weather will likely be cloudy.)
Observers on the East Coast will have a better view; Europeans will get to see the whole thing.
It's time to update the sunrise chart. (You can get one for your own location at http://www.wx-now.com/Sunrise/SunriseChart.aspx.)
Notice that in 2007, Daylight Saving Time lasts a lot longer than in years past: from the second Sunday in March through the first Sunday in November. This actually makes the autumn a little darker, as you can see from the chart.
Date |
Significance |
Sunrise |
Sunset |
Daylight |
2007 |
4 Jan |
Latest sunrise until Oct 30 |
07:19 |
16:33 |
9:13 |
28 Jan |
5pm sunset |
07:08 |
17:00 |
9:52 |
5 Feb |
7am sunrise |
06:59 |
17:10 |
10:10 |
20 Feb |
5:30pm sunset |
06:40 |
17:30 |
10:49 |
27 Feb |
6:30am sunrise |
06:29 |
17:38 |
11:08 |
10 Mar |
Earliest sunrise until April 15th Earliest sunset until Oct 28th |
06:11 |
17:51 |
11:39 |
11 Mar |
Daylight savings time begins Latest sunrise until Oct 21st |
07:10 |
18:52 |
11:42 |
17 Mar |
7am sunrise |
07:00 |
18:59 |
11:59 |
18 Mar |
12-hour day |
06:58 |
19:00 |
12:02 |
21 Mar |
Equinox, 00:07 (Mar 21) UTC (19:07 CDT) |
06:53 |
19:04 |
12:11 |
3 Apr |
6:30am sunrise (again) |
06:30 |
19:18 |
12:47 |
13 Apr |
7:30pm sunset |
06:15 |
19:30 |
13:15 |
22 Apr |
6am sunrise |
06:00 |
19:40 |
13:39 |
10 May |
8pm sunset |
05:35 |
20:00 |
14:25 |
16 May |
5:30am sunrise |
05:30 |
20:04 |
14:34 |
15 Jun |
Earliest sunrises of the year |
05:14 |
20:28 |
15:13 |
19 Jun |
8:30pm sunset |
05:15 |
20:30 |
15:14 |
21 Jun |
Solstice, 18:06 UTC (13:06 CDT) |
05:15 |
20:30 |
15:15 |
27 Jun |
Latest sunset of the year |
05:17 |
20:31 |
15:13 |
1 Jul |
8:30pm sunset |
05:19 |
20:30 |
15:11 |
17 Jul |
5:30am sunrise |
05:30 |
20:24 |
14:54 |
9 Aug |
8pm sunset |
05:52 |
20:00 |
14:08 |
17 Aug |
6am sunrise |
06:00 |
19:49 |
13:48 |
29 Aug |
7:30pm sunset |
06:13 |
19:30 |
13:17 |
15 Sep |
6:30am sunrise; 7pm sunset |
06:30 |
18:59 |
12:28 |
23 Sep |
Equinox, 09:51 UTC (04:51 CDT) |
06:39 |
18:47 |
12:08 |
26 Sep |
12-hour day |
06:42 |
18:42 |
12:00 |
3 Oct |
6:30pm sunset |
06:49 |
18:29 |
11:39 |
13 Oct |
7am sunrise |
07:01 |
18:13 |
11:12 |
21 Oct |
6pm sunset |
07:10 |
18:00 |
10:50 |
3 Nov |
Latest sunrise of the year Latest sunset until Mar 2nd |
07:25 |
17:43 |
10:17 |
4 Nov |
Standard time returns Earliest sunrise until Feb 29th |
06:27 |
16:41 |
10:14 |
7 Nov |
6:30am sunrise (again) |
06:30 |
16:38 |
10:07 |
15 Nov |
4:30pm sunset |
06:40 |
16:30 |
9:49 |
2 Dec |
7am sunrise |
07:00 |
16:20 |
9:20 |
8 Dec |
Earliest sunset of the year |
07:06 |
16:20 |
9:13 |
21 Dec |
Solstice, 00:08 (Dec 22) UTC (18:08 CST) |
07:15 |
16:22 |
9:06 |
You can get sunrise information for your location at wx-now.com.
The Winter Solstice happens today at 6:22 pm CST (00:22 UTC).
I also forgot to mention, because it happened while my office DSL was down (cutting off my Web servers from the world), that this past Friday had the earliest sunset of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
Ordinarilly at a juncture like this I would write a dissertation on why the earliest sunset precedes the latest sunrise by four weeks, or why neither coincides with the solstice, but I'll spare you for now. No, the sun is setting later now, but the sun is also rising later, until January 4th, sorry to say.