Plainview, TX: shortest day and earliest sunset

The shortest day in Plainview

On Dec 21 the sun rises at 7:49 am and sets at 5:41 pm: 9h 52m of daylight, a moderate winter. The longest day of summer has 14h 26m, so the swing is 4h 34m.

When it gets better in Plainview

• Earliest sunset: 5:37 pm on Dec 4, before the shortest day (here is why).
• Latest sunrise (standard time): 7:53 am on Jan 7.
• Back above 10 hours of daylight: Jan 8.
• By Feb 21 the days grow by 2 minutes a day.

Waking and coming home in the dark

With a 7:00 am alarm, the sun is not yet up on 192 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 34.2°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 Plainview

• A sunrise alarm clock is worth getting here: on 138 weekdays the sun is still at least 20 minutes from rising at 7:00 am. Dark mornings run from Aug 4 to Apr 28, so set it up before Aug 4.
• Daylight alone gives little reason for a light therapy lamp here. Getting outside in the 7:49 am to 5:41 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 Plainview, month by month

Sunrise, sunset and day length on the 21st of each month, local clock time. December is the darkest, at 9h 52m.

Plainview against the places around it

On the shortest day, compared with Plainview (9h 52m, sunset 5:41 pm):

• Lubbock, TX, 44 mi away: 9h 56m of daylight (+4 min), sunset 5:44 pm (+3 min).
• Levelland, TX, 56 mi away: 9h 55m of daylight (+3 min), sunset 5:45 pm (+4 min).
• Canyon, TX, 56 mi away: 9h 48m of daylight (-4 min), sunset 5:40 pm (-1 min).
• Hereford, TX, 58 mi away: 9h 49m of daylight (-3 min), sunset 5:42 pm (+1 min).
• Amarillo, TX, 70 mi away: 9h 47m of daylight (-5 min), sunset 5:39 pm (-2 min).