Americus, GA: shortest day and earliest sunset

The shortest day in Americus

On Dec 21 the sun rises at 7:34 am and sets at 5:37 pm: 10h 03m of daylight, a bright winter. The longest day of summer has 14h 15m, so the swing is 4h 12m.

When it gets better in Americus

• Earliest sunset: 5:32 pm on Dec 3, before the shortest day (here is why).
• Latest sunrise (standard time): 7:38 am on Jan 9.
• Daylight never drops below 10 hours here.
• By Feb 21 the days grow by 1.9 minutes a day.

Waking and coming home in the dark

With a 7:00 am alarm, the sun is not yet up on 170 weekdays a year. Heading home at 5:30 pm, it has already set on 0. 0 weekdays start and end in the dark. The alarm and lamp guide shows how that compares across the country.

At 32.1°N this sits between Sarasota FL (27°N, 1.4%) and Nashua NH (43°N, 9.7%) in a 1990 survey of winter depression by latitude.

What to do about it in Americus

• A sunrise alarm clock is worth getting here: on 104 weekdays the sun is still at least 20 minutes from rising at 7:00 am. Dark mornings run from Aug 13 to Apr 22, so set it up before Aug 13.
• Daylight alone gives little reason for a light therapy lamp here. Getting outside in the 7:34 am to 5:37 pm window on the shortest day does more than most people expect.
• Heading home at 5:30 pm, you get at least some daylight all year here.

Daylight in Americus, month by month

Sunrise, sunset and day length on the 21st of each month, local clock time. December is the darkest, at 10h 03m.

Americus against the places around it

On the shortest day, compared with Americus (10h 03m, sunset 5:37 pm):

• Albany, GA, 34 mi away: 10h 05m of daylight (+2 min), sunset 5:38 pm (+1 min).
• Perry, GA, 40 mi away: 10h 01m of daylight (-2 min), sunset 5:34 pm (-3 min).
• Columbus, GA, 49 mi away: 10h 01m of daylight (-2 min), sunset 5:38 pm (+1 min).
• Warner Robins, GA, 49 mi away: 10h 00m of daylight (-3 min), sunset 5:33 pm (-4 min).
• Phenix City, AL, 54 mi away: 10h 01m of daylight (-2 min), sunset 5:39 pm (+2 min).