Prompts winter weather advisories as cold air moves in Friday night

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Here’s a ray of hopeful news in this darkest month of the year in Minnesota. The sun set at 4:31 p.m. this week in the Twin Cities. It begins to creep ever so slowly later into the evening as we move later into December. 

By New Year’s Eve, the sun will set a full 10 minutes later at 4:41 p.m.!

Sunset times begin to move later into the evening before the 

One reason is that Earth’s orbit is an ellipse and not a circle. That plays with the sunset times around the solstice. That’s why the 

In the Twin Cities, the earliest sunset is 4:31 p.m. and occurs around Dec. 9. 

So even in these darkest days of winter, I take it as a great sign that evening daylight begins to increase. On clear days by the end of the month, it’s light in the western sky until at least 5 p.m. with civil twilight.

So even though the days grow colder, there’s more light at the end of the wintry tunnel each day.

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Paul Huttner

Author

The earliest sunsets occur this week in Minnesota.

Later sunsets begin this week in Minnesota

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