Xmas over , nights getting lighter now, soon be spring !
Technically .. Sunset is now getting later (has been since 15th Dec) but Sunrise does not get earlier until 5th Jan .. so depends on your choice ... do you like bright evenings or bright mornings ??
http://www.timeanddate.com/sun/uk/london?month=12&year=2014
Yep, at this time of year, slightly darker mornings and lighter evenings is all to do with a solar 24 hours being an average that we only get 4 times a year! The rest of the time it varies from about 23hrs 59min and 45 seconds to 24hrs and 15secs. All due to the Earth's orbit being elliptical and differences in sun's gravitational pull according to distance and whether the Earth is travelling towards or away from the Sun. Orbital forcing from the positions of the planets and their gravity has a slight effect too.
We tend to think of things like a solar 24 hours being constant, but the solar system is a dynamic system due to planetary orbits and the Sun's and planet's rotations and their gravitational interactions, so it is only an average for a complete year.
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Topic: Well....it's almost over (Read 1795 times)