Sun & Moon Times

Pick a city and date to get exact sunrise, sunset, golden hour, blue hour, the astronomical dark-sky window, the moon phase and moonrise/moonset — all in local time. Built for photographers and stargazers who need to plan the light.

Choose a city

What SkyClock computes

Every city page is a full ephemeris for the date you choose, not a one-line sunrise time:

• Twilight ladder — astronomical, nautical and civil dawn & dusk, so you know exactly when the sky starts and stops being usable.
• Golden & blue hour — the morning and evening windows, to the minute, for photography.
• Dark-sky window — how long the Sun stays below 18°, the true-dark period for stargazing and astrophotography (and a clear flag when there is none).
• Moon — phase, illuminated percentage, moonrise, moonset and distance, plus the next new, first-quarter, full and last-quarter dates.

FAQ

What is the golden hour?

The golden hour is the period soon after sunrise and before sunset when the Sun sits low (roughly 0° to 6° above the horizon) and light is warm, soft and directional. SkyClock gives the exact morning and evening golden-hour windows for your city and date.

What is the blue hour?

The blue hour is the twilight period when the Sun is between about 0° and 6° below the horizon — before sunrise and after sunset — when the sky turns deep blue. It falls between sunset and civil dusk (and between civil dawn and sunrise).

What is astronomical twilight and true darkness?

Astronomical twilight is when the Sun is 12°–18° below the horizon; once it drops past 18° the sky is fully dark, which matters for stargazing and astrophotography. SkyClock reports the length of that dark-sky window for each night — and tells you when there is no true darkness at all (as happens near the poles in summer).

How is the moon phase calculated?

SkyClock computes the Sun–Moon elongation for the chosen date to derive the illuminated fraction and phase (new, waxing, first quarter, full, and so on), plus the dates of the next new and full moon. A bright moon washes out faint stars, so the illumination figure is the quickest read on whether a night is good for deep-sky viewing.

Are the times exact?

They are computed from standard astronomical formulae — accurate to about a minute for the Sun and a few minutes for the Moon, shown in each city’s local time with daylight saving handled automatically. Good for planning; not intended for navigation or safety-critical use.