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Solstice - It's the Tilt
Our shadows are sunsticks. At 59° latitude, we live
near the top of a tipping planet. In summer, days last forever
as the earth tilts the northern hemisphere toward the sun.
With the sun high in the summer sky, we walk on our short,
stubby shadows.
In winter, the sun rises late to scribe a low arc over
the Kenai Mountains and sets all too early. In winter, nights
and our shadows stretch longer and longer.
Summer Solstice
© Dennis C. Anderson
On summer solstice, the longest day of the year, the Kachemak
Bay sun arcs 288 degrees across the sky from sunrise to
sunset. The series of photographs, stitched together, was
taken from Baycrest Overlook. At this time of year, the
sun barely dips below the horizon and we have bright twilight
during the night.
The same garden island appears on the opposite sides of
the panorama because the sun's arc almost completes a circle.
In both summer and winter photo series, the sun was photographed
once per hour.
Sunrise at 4:45 AM
Azimuth* 36° NNE |
Sunset at 11:29 PM
Azimuth 324° NNW |
Maximum Altitude 53.8°
180° S at 2:07 PM |
| *Azimuth, an astronomical measurement,
is the number of degrees clockwise from due north to
the point on the horizon directly below the rising or
setting sun. |
Winter Solstice
© Dennis C. Anderson
On winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, the Kachemak
Bay sun arcs 80 degrees across the sky from sunrise to sunset.
The series of photographs, stitched together, was taken
at the same site. At this time of year, the sun is very
low in the sky and we have 16 hours of darkness.
Sunrise at 10:05 AM
Azimuth 140° SE |
Sunset at 4:03 PM
Azimuth 220° SW |
Maximum Altitude 6.9°
180° S at 1:05 PM |
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