Reference
Equinoxes and solstices 2026 and 2027
The four turning points of the year, to the minute, and what they do to the length of the day.
| Event | When (UTC) | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| March equinox | Day and night are nearly equal | |
| June solstice | Longest day in the north, shortest in the south | |
| September equinox | Day and night are nearly equal | |
| December solstice | Shortest day in the north, longest in the south | |
| March equinox | Day and night are nearly equal | |
| June solstice | Longest day in the north, shortest in the south | |
| September equinox | Day and night are nearly equal | |
| December solstice | Shortest day in the north, longest in the south |
Why they happen
Earth's axis is tilted. An equinox is the moment the Sun is directly over the equator, and a solstice is the moment it is furthest north or south. The instants are the same everywhere on Earth; only the local date and clock time depend on where you are.
Day length on the 2026 solstices
How long the Sun is above the horizon on the June and December solstices of 2026 at six places, from sunrise to sunset.
| Place | Latitude | 21 June | 21 December |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pune | 18.5°N | 13 h 15 min | 11 h 01 min |
| New York | 40.7°N | 15 h 06 min | 9 h 15 min |
| London | 51.5°N | 16 h 38 min | 7 h 50 min |
| Tromsø | 69.6°N | Sun stays up or down all day | Sun stays up or down all day |
| Tokyo | 35.7°N | 14 h 35 min | 9 h 45 min |
| Sydney | 33.9°S | 9 h 54 min | 14 h 25 min |
How these were checked
All 8 equinoxes and solstices in 2026 and 2027 agree with the US Naval Observatory's table; the largest difference is 60 seconds. Sunrise and sunset on both 2026 solstices at these six places were compared with the Observatory's rise and set tables: 20 times, all within 30 seconds.
Sources
- U.S. Naval Observatory, Astronomical Applications API. The published tables our results were compared with
- astronomy-engine. The MIT licensed library that does the calculations, run on the page's build machine and in the app