NOAA Solar Calculator
Find Sunrise, Sunset, Solar Noon and Solar Position for Any Place on Earth
Show:
Drag the large red pin to the desired location and enter the date and time at which to calculate the sun position.
Location:
Latitude -
An angular measurement of north-south location on Earth's
surface. Latitude ranges from -90 at the south pole, to zero at the
equator, to +90 at the north pole."
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Longitude -
An angular measurement of east-west location on Earth's
surface. Longitude ranges from -180 in the western hemisphere to +180 in
the eastern, with zero at the prime meridian, which passes through
Greenwich, England."
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time zone and
UTC offset
are automatically determined when possible
based on the given location and date. Once the location has been set,
the user may manually override the time zone or UTC offset by selecting
them here."
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UTC offset
is automatically determined when possible, based on the
given time zone and date. The user can manually override this value by
entering it here after location, time zone and date have been set."
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Working...
Working...
Date:
:
:
Result
Equation of time - an astronomical term accounting for changes in the time of solar noon for a given location over the course of a year. Earth's elliptical orbit and Kepler's law of equal areas in equal times are the culprits behind this phenomenon."
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(minutes):
Solar Declination - The declination of the sun. The solar declination varies from -23.44° at the (northern hemisphere) winter solstice, through 0° at the vernal equinox, to +23.44° at the summer solstice. The variation in solar declination is the astronomical description of the sun going south (in the northern hemisphere) for the winter. "
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(in°):
Solar Noon -
Defined for a given day for a specific longitude,
it is the time when the sun crosses the meridian
of the observer's location. At solar noon, a shadow cast by a vertical
pole will point either directly north or directly south, depending on the
observer's latitude and the time of year."
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(hh:mm:ss):
Apparent Sunrise - Due to
atmospheric refraction, sunrise occurs
shortly before the sun crosses above the horizon. Light from
the sun is bent, or refracted, as it enters earth's atmosphere.
This effect causes the apparent sunrise to be earlier than the actual
sunrise."
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(hh:mm):
Apparent Sunset -
Due to atmospheric refraction, sunset occurs
shortly after the sun crosses below the horizon. Light from
the sun is bent, or refracted, as it enters earth's atmosphere.
This effect causes the apparent sunset to be later than the actual
sunset."
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(hh:mm):
Azimuth/Elevation -
An angular coordinate system for locating
positions in the sky. Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north
to the point on the horizon
directly below the object. Elevation is measured vertically from that
point on the horizon up to the object."
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(in °) at Local Time:
Sunrise/Sunset Tables
Tables with times of sunrise, sunset and solar noon for each day of the year for the location and year specified in the form above can be created by clicking on the button below.
Tables will open up in a new tab/window
Interested in Doing Your Own Calculations?
Details about the calculations and spreadsheets that can be used to calculate solar data are available on the solar calculation details page.Having Trouble?
- Check your Time Zone -- Is the time zone set correctly for this location? Our calculator attempts to determine the correct time zone for the given location and date, but because time zones and the start and end dates of Daylight Saving Time sometimes change, this value may not be accurate for historical or future dates.
- Click the Show Sunrise, Show Sunset and Show Azimuth checkboxes to display color-coded lines on the map indicating the direction of sunrise, sunset and solar position based on the Local Time and Date entered.
- This solar calculator is provided for research and entertainment purposes only. Due to variable atmospheric conditions and uncertainty inherent in the algorithms used, the actual observed values of sunrise, sunset and solar position may differ from the results presented here.