How Much Daylight Does Northern Minnesota Lose In October?
It happens every single year. Usually, in mid-September, I look at my wife in the evening and say, "Wow, it's getting dark early!" I've lived here most of my life, and every fall we say the same thing. Wow, I can't believe how early it's getting dark!
Or, if you are an early morning riser, you may notice that the sun is coming up later in the fall. Yes, the days are getting shorter, and October is the quick decline.
Here in Duluth, Minnesota, the sunrise on October 1st is 7:07 AM, and the sunset is 6:47 PM. That adds up to 11:39:45 of daytime.
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Northern latitudes have shorter days because of their distance from the equator. As the Earth's northern hemisphere tilts away from the sun during the fall, it gets darker longer the further north you go.
Fast forward now to Halloween, and it's getting dark enough for the kids to go trick-or-treating almost right after school. The sunset is at 5:53 PM. With the sunrise at 7:49 am, that makes the day 10:03:54 long.
That's roughly 1 hour and 36 minutes of daylight lost in October. Enjoy as much sun as you can, and get ready for that light therapy for the winter months!