How much daylight will Las Vegas have on the longest day of 2024?
If you enjoy long days of sunshine, Thursday is your day above all others.
The summer solstice, also sometimes called the longest day of the year, begins with sunrise at 5:23 a.m. in Las Vegas.
The sun will set over Red Rock Canyon (depending on your view) at 8:01 p.m. That’s 14 hours and 38 minutes of daylight. The peak will be at 1:50 p.m.
In most years, June 21 is the longest day of the year, but the timing varies a bit each year because of the Earth’s rotation. This year’s summer solstice is the earliest in 228 years — since June 20, 1796.
On the summer solstice, the Earth’s axis tilts 23.4 degrees at the same time as the sun reaches its highest point of altitude (about 94.5 million miles).
The result is that, with the exception of the polar regions, the Northern Hemisphere experiences the longest period of daylight hours of the year on that day, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
But, of course, the polar regions have days that are far longer when the Earth tilts toward the sun.
The summer sun never sets above the Arctic Circle.
Svalbard is a town in Norway where the midnight sun occurs for the longest period. The sun doesn’t set between April 20 and Aug. 22. That’s 124 days.
In Las Vegas, the days will very gradually get a bit shorter starting June 21 as the Earth rotates toward the winter solstice.
The Dec. 21 winter solstice in Las Vegas will begin at 6:48 a.m. and end at 4:30 p.m. The sun will be up just 9 hours and 42 minutes.
Contact Marvin Clemons at mclemons@reviewjournal.com.
