May 24, 2010
Manhattanhenge 2010: May 30/31 and July 11/12
Update: The Manhattanhenge 2011 dates and times are nearly identical to 2010.
If the weather cooperates, Manhattan will soon again be treated to its uniquely urban ritual marking of time: Manhattanhenge.
This weekend, the sun will set in perfect alignment with primary sections of the Manhattan street grid. The dates were determined by Neil deGrasse Tyson, the director of the Hayden Planetarium in the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History. He’s also the one who figured out Manhattanhenge and named it.
The 2010 Manhattanhenge dates:
Half-sun on the grid:
Sunday, May 30 at 8:17 p.m.
Monday, July 12 at 8:24 p.m.
Full-sun on the grid:
Monday, May 31 at 8:17 p.m.
Sunday, July 11 at 8:24 p.m.
Tyson, (who also tweets,) explains Manhattanhenge on his website:As you may know, had Manhattan’s grid been perfectly aligned with the geographic north-south line, then the days of Manhattanhenge would be the spring and autumn equinoxes, the only two days on the calendar when the Sun rises due-east and sets due-west. But Manhattan’s street grid is rotated 30 degrees east from geographic north, shifting the days of alignment elsewhere into the calendar.
Note that any city crossed by a rectangular grid can identify days where the setting Sun aligns with their streets. But a closer look at such cities around the world shows them to be less than ideal for this purpose. Beyond the grid you need a clear view to the horizon, as we have over New Jersey. And tall buildings that line the streets create a kind of brick and steel channel to frame the setting Sun, creating a striking photographic opportunity. …
So Manhattanhenge may just be a unique urban phenomenon in the world, if not the universe.
Picture credit: Manhattanhenge from 34th Street. Amy Langfield/NewYorkology.
May 24, 2010 7:53 AM in Architecture, Cheap Stuff, Kids, Midtown, Sightsology
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