Places in the world with the most daylight hoursAccording to the World Meteorological Organization, Yuma (Arizona) is the sunniest place on earth. It has a total of 11 hours of sunlight in winter and up to 13 in summer. This means Yuma experiences an average of 4,015 hours of sunshine per year.
The Sun. Because Florida lies so close to the equator, it receives stronger sunlight than the rest of the country. If you spin the globe slowly, just as the Earth turns on its axis to create day and night, you'll also discover that Florida is almost always right in the path of your flashlight during the day.
We'll note a technicality, however: For a few days after a summer solstice, the sunset can happen at a slightly later time depending on where you live. This is because a day on Earth is actually less than 24 hours.
When the sun starts running behind the clock — as it does in December and January — the time of solar noon keeps getting pushed later. This delays the time of sunrise in the morning and causes sunset in the evening to be later than we would otherwise expect.
As the sun moves northward in the summer, the days are longer the further north you go (24 hour sunlight near the north pole), but in the winter as the sun moves southward, the days are shorter in the north and there is 24 hour light at the south pole -- 24 hour darkness at the north pole.
This means that at the north pole, the sun doesn't rise or set at all due to the Earth's rotation. The sun does move through the sky (from one of those circles on the film to another) on a yearly cycle, though, and this is why there is light at the north pole for 6 months and night for 6 months.
Instead of a perfectly-circular orbit, Earth's orbit around the Sun is slightly elliptical. The combination of Earth's elliptical orbit and the tilt of its axis results in the Sun taking different paths across the sky at slightly different speeds each day. This gives us different sunrise and sunset times each day.
This is due to the axial tilt of the Earth. During this period the northern hemisphere is oriented more towards the sun resulting in longer days and later sunsets the farther north you go during this period.
The shortest day of the year in terms of daylight occurs on the winter solstice but that is not when Tampa observes its earliest sunset. In fact, the earliest sunset occurs during the first few days of December-- setting at 5:34 PM.
June 2020 — Sun in Orlando
| 2020 | Sunrise/Sunset | Daylength |
|---|
| Jun | Sunrise | Length |
|---|
| 29 | 6:30 am ↑ | 13:56:13 |
| 30 | 6:31 am ↑ | 13:55:53 |
| * All times are local time for Orlando. Time is adjusted for DST when applicable. They take into account refraction. Dates are based on the Gregorian calendar. |
76 days of midnight sun between May and July greets travelers in Northern Norway. The further north you go, the more nights of midnight sun you get. During the summer months, you can experience up to 24 hours of sunlight above the Arctic Circle, which means more time to enjoy the sights and make new discoveries.
December 2020 — Sun in Orlando
| 2020 | Sunrise/Sunset | Nautical Twilight |
|---|
| Dec | Sunrise | End |
|---|
| 21 | 7:14 am ↑ | 6:29 pm |
| 22 | 7:14 am ↑ | 6:29 pm |
| 23 | 7:15 am ↑ | 6:30 pm |
July 2020 — Sun in Florida
| 2020 | Sunrise/Sunset | Nautical Twilight |
|---|
| Jul | Sunrise | End |
|---|
| 28 | 7:40 am ↑ | 6:59 pm |
| 29 | 7:39 am ↑ | 7:00 pm |
| 30 | 7:38 am ↑ | 7:00 pm |
When it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere. This tilt is the reason that days are longer in the summer and shorter in the winter. The hemisphere that's tilted closest to the Sun has the longest, brightest days because it gets more direct light from the Sun's rays.
Where does the sun set? In the West, of course! Most of Florida's best sunsets can be found on the state's western coast and panhandle, facing the Gulf of Mexico. Bradenton Beach is no exception.
Summer happens in the hemisphere tilted towards the Sun, and winter happens in the hemisphere tilted away from the Sun. The seasons are caused as the Earth, tilted on its axis, travels in a loop around the Sun each year.
The absolute least sunny county in the lower U.S. is Island County, Wash. On an average day, it gets only about 60 percent of the solar radiation of a typical county in Southern California. The states bordering the Great Lakes — from Minnesota to New York — are all at the bottom of the sunlight distribution.
The sunniest months are March and April in the south and April and May in the north, while the least sunny season is winter, when, however, the sun often shines as well.
The measures of sunshine are the percentage of time between sunrise and sunset that sunshine actually reaches the ground.
- 1. California. You can't beat the south and central California coast for pleasant temperatures year round.
- Hawaii.
- Texas.
- Arizona.
- Florida.
- Georgia.
- South Carolina.
- Delaware.
Colorado Is The Most Magical State In America
- Because with "300 days of sunshine," Colorado is one of the sunniest places in America.
- Being at a high altitude just makes things more fun.
- Colorado is a beer-lover's happy place.
- Because, the Rockies.
- You can rock out surrounded by rocks at Red Rocks Amphitheater.
- Or spend some heavenly time at Garden of the Gods.
