Sunrise and Sunset Times
The sunrise sunset calculator helps you determine the sunrise and sunset times for a particular day at all populated latitudes. The Earth rotates at an angular velocity of 15°/hour, so we need a formula to calculate sunrise and sunset based on your location. The calculation uses your location and the day of the year, and from those timings the calculator also estimates how many hours of daylight a place will receive.
Read on to understand what time the Sun rises and sets today, or to learn how to calculate sunrise and sunset times from the underlying formula.
💡 The longer the day, the more energy you can collect with your solar panels — a longer daylight window means more potential generation.
What "sunrise" and "sunset" actually mean
The term sunrise time refers to the moment when the Sun first appears above the horizon — when daylight has arrived. Similarly, we define sunset time as the moment when the Sun disappears below the horizon. For a given location with latitude φ and the n-th day of the year, we estimate these times using the hour angle for sunrise/sunset, ω:
- ω = arccos[ (cos(z) − sin(δ)·sin(φ)) / (cos(δ)·cos(φ)) ]
where:
- δ — the declination angle of the Sun;
- φ — the latitude of the desired location; and
- z — the angle of the Sun below the horizon, equal to 90° for the exact moment of the phenomenon (this calculator uses 90.833°, which adds a small correction for atmospheric refraction and the radius of the Sun's disc).
We take this angle as it is for sunset, while we subtract it from 360° to find sunrise. The declination angle is the angle between the equator and the line joining the centres of the Earth and the Sun. It changes every day n such that:
- δ = arcsin( 0.39872 · sin(L) )
where L is the true longitude of the Sun (its projected position on the Earth). Note that there are several ways to calculate the Sun's declination; this tool uses the accurate NOAA solar position algorithm rather than the simplified expression above, so the results match published almanac values to within about a minute.
How to calculate the times of sunrise and sunset for tomorrow
- Enter the latitude of your location (north is positive, south is negative).
- Enter the longitude of your location (east is positive, west is negative).
- Pick the date you are interested in — set it to tomorrow to plan ahead.
- Select the time zone (UTC offset) that matches your local clock.
- Choose the time format: 24-hour (international/metric) or 12-hour with AM/PM (American).
The calculator instantly returns the sunrise time, the sunset time, the solar noon, and the total length of daylight, together with the Sun's declination and the equation of time for that day.
Example: Using the sunrise sunset calculator
Suppose you are in New York City (latitude 40.71°, longitude −74.01°, time zone UTC−4, i.e. Eastern Daylight Time in summer) on the June solstice, 21 June 2024. Enter those values and the calculator shows a sunrise of about 05:25 and a sunset of about 20:31, giving roughly 15 hours and 6 minutes of daylight — one of the longest days of the year. Switch the time format to 12-hour and the same results read 5:25 AM and 8:31 PM.
💡 Around the summer solstice the days are at their longest; around the winter solstice they are at their shortest. At very high latitudes the Sun may not set at all (midnight sun) or not rise at all (polar night) — the calculator detects and reports both cases.
A note on units (American and metric systems)
Sunrise, sunset and solar noon are expressed as clock times, and the length of daylight is given in hours and minutes — values that are identical in both the American (imperial) and the metric (International System) of measurement. The only difference is presentation: the 12-hour AM/PM clock is common in the United States, while the 24-hour clock is the international and metric convention. Use the time-format selector to switch between them. Geographic coordinates are entered in decimal degrees, a unit shared by both systems.
FAQs
What time is sunrise and sunset today?
Enter your latitude, longitude and time zone, keep the date set to today, and the calculator returns today's sunrise and sunset times for your exact location.
Why are my times a minute or two off from another source?
Sunrise and sunset depend slightly on elevation, local horizon obstructions and the exact refraction model. This calculator uses a standard 90.833° zenith angle at sea level, so results may differ by a minute or two from sources that use a different convention.
What is solar noon?
Solar noon is the moment the Sun reaches its highest point in the sky for the day. It usually differs from clock noon because of your longitude within the time zone and the equation of time.
What is the equation of time?
The equation of time is the difference between apparent solar time (sundial time) and mean clock time. It varies through the year by up to about ±16 minutes and is one reason sunrise and sunset are not symmetric around 12:00.
Why does the calculator say the Sun never rises or never sets?
At latitudes inside the polar circles, around the solstices, the Sun can stay above the horizon for a full 24 hours (midnight sun) or stay below it all day (polar night). When this happens there is no sunrise or sunset for that date, and the calculator reports it explicitly.
🔎 Want to know exactly where the Sun is in the sky at a given moment? Try our Sun Angle calculator for solar elevation and azimuth.