Overview
- Utqiagvik, which began its polar day Sunday, will see continuous daylight until August 2, according to the National Weather Service.
- A National Weather Service timelapse showed the sun dip near the horizon around 1:48 a.m. and rise again at 2:57 a.m., marking the switch to 24-hour light.
- The phenomenon occurs because Earth’s axis tilts about 23.5 degrees, keeping the sun above the horizon for places north of the Arctic Circle like this city.
- Elsewhere in Alaska, Fairbanks is set for roughly 70 days of 24-hour daylight, while Anchorage heads into very long summer days without true midnight sun.
- After the sun starts setting again in August, AccuWeather says nights will look like twilight until about September 21, when full darkness returns.