Today's sunrise and sunset

See what time the Sun rises and sets today in every Brazilian state capital and in the world's main countries, together with day length and the change from yesterday. Times are calculated astronomically for each place's own local date and refer to its reference city.

Brazilian state capitals

Countries and places around the world

What sunrise, sunset and twilight mean

Sunrise is the instant the upper edge of the Sun appears above a flat horizon, and sunset the instant it disappears. Atmospheric refraction bends light so the Sun is visible when it is still geometrically about 0.83° below the horizon, which is why calculations use that value. Solar noon is the moment the Sun crosses the local meridian and reaches its highest point; it only coincides with 12:00 on the clock by chance, because it depends on longitude and on the time zone.

Light does not vanish at sunset. Civil twilight lasts until the Sun is 6° below the horizon: the sky is still bright, the brightest planets and stars appear, and you can read outdoors. In nautical twilight (6° to 12°) the horizon at sea fades, and in astronomical twilight (12° to 18°) the sky is almost dark, but faint objects are still washed out. Only after that is the night fully dark. On the page of each state or country you will find the exact start and end of each phase.

Why day length changes through the year

The Earth's axis is tilted by about 23.4° compared with its orbit. As the planet goes around the Sun, first one hemisphere and then the other leans toward it, so in summer the Sun climbs higher and stays up longer. The distance to the Sun plays almost no role. The effect grows with latitude, which explains the differences between places.

In Brazil, most of which lies in the tropics, the swing is small. This year, on the solstices (June 21 and December 21), the day lasts 12h 7min and 12h 7min in Macapá, practically on the equator; 11h 11min and 13h 4min in Brasília; and 10h 12min and 14h 5min in Porto Alegre, in the south. At the other extreme, in Iceland (latitude 64.1°) the same dates give 21h 7min and 4h 7min. Beyond the polar circles (66.5° N and S) the Sun may stay above the horizon for weeks (midnight sun) or below it (polar night), something that never happens in Brazil.

Also keep in mind that the table shows each place's own local date and clock time, so a country in a time zone far from Brasília may already be on a different day. To compare clocks, see the world time page or the time zones guide. For the other side of the sky, check the Moon phase today, and for the dates when each season begins, the seasons page.

Pick a state