What’s So Special about sunrise in Islamabad and Karachi
Being at the right time of day under the right conditions, you can look in any direction and see a huge ball of fire in the sky. Have you ever wondered what it is? Well, here’s the answer; our star named “the Sun” is just one star among billions. Over time, humans have used many names for it, such as: ‘Lucifer,’ ‘Astaroth,’ ‘The Red Star,’ and so on. Astronomers don’t agree on exactly what to call this object because there are different reasons why each name was used throughout different civilizations—but there may also be a good chance that every name has some truth behind it. Here’s a little insight into our Sun.
In Pakistan, the times of Sunrise and sunset follow a moderate North-South pattern throughout the year. During summer, days can be long and hot, while days may be short and cold. In Islamabad, it’s particularly noticeable that summer days are longer than winter ones; in June, a day lasts up to approximately 14:30 hours! On the other hand, the longest nights happen in winter (in the Southern Hemisphere, they happen in summer). December’s nightly sunsets last almost 15 hours – so these days, a night is too long! Climatically Pakistan is very different from the Mediterranean. Its temperatures are very moderate and steady throughout the year – with warm periods rather than cold ones.
Each calendar day starts and ends at the same point in the night across the world. The earliest Sunrise is happening as of this moment in Shakargarh, Pakistan, with a shiny sun rising at 6:59 am. As for the latest sunset, it’s happening right now in Jiwani, Pakistan, based on what we’re able to observe with the naked eye. There are more than 1,400 miles to go until it arrives at its position over Russia’s archipelago at Ratmanova, where it will set at 5:07 pm (the latest sunset for our readers on that day). The northernmost city in Antarctica, located near the South pole, sees the Sunrise just with hours left to do so before completely disappearing from the horizon.
The time it takes for the Sun to go down decreases if one is closer to the equator, and it can hardly be seen at all if you’re in the polar regions. Over a year, this difference is pretty significant too! Imagine that if one were right over the equator, their sunset would last only around 20 minutes in June, while in December, they wouldn’t see any daylight at all but would instead have everlasting dusk! In Islamabad, where I live, however, we are quite far from these poles by about 33 degrees, so that means our sunset lasts around 28 minutes in June. There’s an easy way to calculate how long your sunset will last depending on where you live because you need to add or subtract about 15 minutes for every 30 degrees farther away from the equator you travel!
Sunrise is when the Sun first appears on the horizon in the morning. It is also considered the beginning of a new day. Sunrise occurs in approximately half-hour increments, dependent on latitude and longitude. Since Sunrise and sunset depend on longitude increments, two cities can have Sunrise or sunset occur at roughly the same time if they are located at close proximities along a common longitudinal axis (a plane extending through Earth’s center forming any great circle).
The duration and timing of sunrises and sunsets generally lengthen as the distance from the equator increases. At 34 degrees, Islamabad shares a similar day length to Phoenix, Arizona, at 33.5 degrees north latitude. It can be credited to the fact that many regions with closer proximity to the equator are more developed and tropical, which means there are more buildings built with materials that reflect sunlight rather than absorb it (buildings like forests absorb light instead). And obviously, we all know that shorter days correlate with colder weather! In other words, if you look further away from the equator toward places like Canada or Greenland, you’ll see longer days and warmer temperatures on average.
A study from the Comsat Institute of Information Technology on weather patterns showed that the difference in sunset times was higher during winter months than in summer to different locations around the world.
The Sun reaches the horizon at different times of day in separate locations across the world during certain seasons. It is because when you look at sunset through a telescope, you’re looking at it from one location, hence your city; however, every other location on Earth also gets a unique vantage point. The time of sunset varies as you shift your gaze throughout the year. The exact time of sunsets depended on each city’s exact longitude at a given time as well as the day of year and latitude from which it is being viewed.
When the Earth orbits around the Sun and spins on its axis, we experience day and night. It also creates seasons. Each day, the time of Sunrise and sunset changes with winter, spring, summer, and fall, adding more than an hour to each season’s length in places like the north and south poles. These annual changes occur because the Earth tilts 19 degrees from being a perfect circle (23 hour days), is 25,000 miles off-center from spinning in a perfect circle (13 hours & 11 minutes of sunlight at the North Pole during summer solstice compared to darkness at the South Pole during winter solstice), although also depending on latitude.
In Pakistan, the Sun rises and sets earlier on cities with higher modifications than it does for cities with lower longiations. The best example of this is Lahore and Hyderabad, which share a border. Lahore has 74 degrees longitude, while Hyderabad has 68 degrees longitude. It means that Lahore will be exposed to the warm morning sunlight before Hyderabad because of the city’s higher value of longitude compared to the others. Another effect of shifts in latitude is a shift of Sunrise and sunset times across Pakistan as one moves farther from the equator towards higher latitudes – or north or south halves if looking at a map. In countries between latitudes 0 and 50, such as India, South America, and Russia, respectively, there are two distinct seasons (winter and summer) where temperatures differ significantly due to their distance from the equator.
It awakens the planet, birds, trees, and wildlife. Watch the beautiful Sunrise while enjoying a full cup of coffee or tea with some fresh baked seasonal fruit; it’s a lovely way to start the day!
Serenity, serenity, serenity. If you look at the color of the first rays of light radiating in your bedroom and feel a rush of emotions bringing joy into your day, then know that you are not alone! And should it happen to be cloudy outside with no sign of the Sun officially appearing on this side of the world for another hour or two… then make sure to take a moment and connect with your soul where such tranquility lives! That way, whenever you speak about this intangible feeling so difficult to articulate… others will understand how peaceful life can be when you stop trying to control everything. Well, it makes sense that Lahore happens to be sunrise central since it’s situated at 74 degrees east longitude. While observing a sunrise, it is hard not to be filled with optimism and hope for the future. We all depend on the power of sunshine, yet sometimes we forget how lucky we are to have so much light at our disposal. No matter who you are and where you’re from, the Sunrise can shower one with warmth and reassurance in their heart. While those living in Pakistan know that they enjoy a beautiful sunrise earlier than others around them, it’s also important to remember that these memories last no matter forever when the Sun rises or sets!
Due to the tilt of the Earth’s axis and its elliptical orbit around the Sun, different places host Sunrise and sunset when observed at a certain location on Earth each day. According to the World Meteorological Organization, Islamabad is located at a degree angle of 73. Islamabad follows close behind at 72 degrees. And then sitting in the middle at 68 degrees longitude is Karachi, which experienced Sunrise and sunset before people in Islamabad and Karachi. It sits closer to the East than India or Iran. Owing to the Earth’s tilt on its axis 23.5° and its elliptical orbit around the Sun, the position of the Sun above the horizon was different from day to day observed at the same time on each day, said an official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. In Islamabad, Sunrise occurred at 5:21 am, but it began a few minutes earlier in Lahore based at a longitudinal value of 66°. In contrast, Karachi saw Sunrise occur only after 5:18 am, even though it had
