TOLEDO, Ohio — Wednesday is the last time northwest Ohio will see a sunset 6:30 p.m. or later until the spring. As winter approaches, sunset times will get earlier and earlier, especially after daylight saving time ends this Sunday at 2 a.m.
Here's what you need to know about earlier sunset times, including the science behind it, and when longer amounts of daylight will return.
Hemispheres and sun angles: The science of the sunset
As the northern hemisphere nears the winter solstice, and Earth's tilt on its axis positions northern latitudes further away from the sun. This causes sunsets and sunrises to be later in the day and, in turn, limits the hours of daylight hours a region experiences. It is the opposite in the southern hemisphere, which is angled more directly at the sun during these months.
The sun angle is also less direct during winter. You'll notice that, around noontime in the winter, the sun isn't directly overhead like it is in the summertime. The more indirect angle brings about the cold temperatures and shorter amounts of daylight in the winter.
When is the shortest day of the year?
The sun will set at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 30 in northwest Ohio, after which it will continue to get earlier and earlier until the winter solstice - at which point the sunsets (and rises) will grow slowly further apart.
The earlier sunsets will be even earlier come November, when daylight saving time ends. A sunset that otherwise would have been at 6:15 p.m. during DST, for example, will be at 5:15 p.m., instead.
The shortest "day" of the year, with the least amount of time between sunrise and sunset, occurs on Dec. 21 this year - also called the Winter Solstice. The sun will rise at 7:57 a.m. and set at 5:06 p.m., bringing a meager 9 hours, 9 minutes and four seconds of daylight.
When will late sunsets return?
Where has the time gone? Well, you'll get it back in the summertime. The difference between the sunrise and sunset times on the summer solstice (the next one being June 20, 2025) is 15 hours, 12 minutes and 15 seconds.
The next time we will see a sunset at 6:30 p.m. will be March 6, 2025.