The Longest Day of the Year in Different Cities

In the Northern Hemisphere, the longest day of the year is always on or around June 21. This is because on this date, the suns rays are perpendicular to the Tropic of Cancer at 23Â °30 North latitude. This day is called the summer solstice and it happens twice a year: once in the Northern Hemisphere (June 21) and once in the Southern Hemisphere (December 21) where seasons and sunlight are the opposite of the Earths Northern Hemisphere. What Happens During the Summer Solstice? During the summer solstice, the earths circle of illumination or division between day and night runs from the Arctic Circle on the far side of the earth (in relation to the sun) to the Antarctic Circle on the near side of the earth. This means that the equator receives twelve hours of daylight, the North Pole and areas north of 66Â °30 N 24 hours of daylight, and the South Pole and areas south of 66Â °30 S 24 hours of darkness during this time (the South Pole receives 24 hours of sunlight during its summer solstice, the Northern Hemispheres winter solstice). June 20 to 21 is the start of summer and longest day of sunlight in the Northern Hemisphere and the start of winter and shortest day of sunlight in the Southern Hemisphere. Though it might seem like the summer solstice would also be when the sun rises earliest and sets latest, it is not. As you will see, the exact dates of the earliest sunrises and latest sunsets vary by location. Longest Days in the United States Take a look at the sunrises, sunsets, longest days, and hours of daylight information for the U.S. cities listed below. Note that dates have been rounded to the nearest minute in this list for a wider range but the longest days to the nearest second are always the Northern Hemispheres June 20 and 21. Anchorage, Alaska Earliest Sunrise: 4:20 a.m. from June 17 to 19Latest Sunset: 11:42 p.m. from June 18 to 25Longest Days: June 18 to 22Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 19 hours and 21 minutes Honolulu, Hawaii Earliest Sunrise: 5:49 a.m. from May 28 to June 16Latest Sunset: 7:18 p.m. from June 30 to July 7Longest Days: June 15 to 25Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 13 hours and 26 minutes Because it is closest to the equator, Honolulu has the shortest length of daylight during the summer solstice of all U.S. cities profiled here. This tropical location also has far less variation in daylight throughout the year, so even winter days have close to 11 hours of sunlight. Los Angeles, California Earliest Sunrise: 5:41 a.m. from June 6 to 17Latest Sunset: 8:08 p.m. from June 20 to July 6Longest Days: June 19 to 21Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 14 hours and 26 minutes Miami, Florida Earliest Sunrise: 6:29 a.m. from May 31 to June 17Latest Sunset: 8:16 p.m. from June 23 to July 6Longest Days: June 15 to 25Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 13 hours and 45 minutes New York City, New York Earliest Sunrise: 5:24 a.m. from June 11 to 17Latest Sunset: 8:31 p.m. from June 20 to July 3Longest Days: June 18 to 22Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 15 hours and 6 minutes Portland, Oregon Earliest Sunrise: 5:21 a.m. from June 12 to 17Latest Sunset: 9:04 p.m. from June 23 to 27Longest Days: June 16 to 24Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 15 hours and 41 minutes Sacramento, California Earliest Sunrise: 5:41 a.m. from June 8 to June 18Latest Sunset: 8:34 p.m. from June 20 to July 4Longest Days: June 17 to 23Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 14 hours and 52 minutes Seattle, Washington Earliest Sunrise: 5:11 a.m. from June 11 to 20Latest Sunset: 9:11 p.m. from June 19 to 30Longest Days: June 16 to 24Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 15 hours and 59 minutes Longest Days Internationally For big cities around the world, the longest days look very different from place to place. Note which locations can be found in the Northern Hemisphere and which fall in the Southern Hemisphere. London, United Kingdom Earliest Sunrise: 4:43 a.m. from June 11 to 22Latest Sunset: 9:22 p.m. from June 21 to 27Longest Days: June 17 to 24Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 16 hours and 38 minutes Mexico City, Mexico Earliest Sunrise: 6:57 a.m. from June 3 to 7Latest Sunset: 8:19 p.m. from June 27 to July 12Longest Days: June 13 to 28Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 13 hours and 18 minutes Nairobi, Kenya Earliest Sunrise: 6:11 a.m. from November 3 to 7Latest Sunset: 6:52 p.m. from February 4 to June 14Longest Days: December 2 to January 10Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 12 hours and 12 minutes Nairobi, only 1Â °17 south of the equator, has exactly 12 hours of sunlight on June 21—the sun rises at 6:33 a.m. and sets at 6:33 p.m. Because the city is in the Southern Hemisphere, it experiences its longest day on December 21. Nairobis shortest days, occurring in mid-June, are just 10 minutes shorter than the longest days in December. The lack of diversity in Nairobis sunrise and sunset throughout the year provides a clear example of why lower latitudes dont require or benefit from Daylight Saving Time. Reykjavik, Iceland Earliest Sunrise: 2:55 a.m. from June 18 to 21Latest Sunset: 12:04 a.m. from June 21 to 24Longest Days: June 18 to 22Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 21 hours and 8 minutes If Reykjavik were just a few degrees to the north, it would fall within the Arctic Circle and experience 24 hours of daylight on the summer solstice. Tokyo, Japan Earliest Sunrise: 4:25 a.m. from June 6 to 20Latest Sunset: 7:01 p.m. from June 22 to July 5Longest Days: June 19 to 23Hours of Daylight on Longest Day: 14 hours and 35 minutes