It’s time for New Yorkers to get excited about the sunset.
That’s because Manhattanhenge comes to us. It can produce, when the weather cooperates, four of the most amazing sunsets of the year in New York City.
The name is a glimpse of New York style in Stonehenge, the ancient rock structure of the English countryside that aligns with the sunsets and sunrises during the summer and winter solstices. This premodern monument was built specifically for religious and spiritual reasons. In contrast, the New York City grid was not designed with sunsets in mind, but it has ended up working similarly. For four days each May and July, you can gather people to admire our particular geographical location in the cosmos as the sun sets on the horizon, disappearing perfectly through the wide west-east corridors of the city.
An event like Manhattanhenge can stop the whole neighborhood, calling on people to celebrate an otherwise normal daily sunset.
As if New York couldn’t become more magical, Manhattanhenge’s sunsets light up the streets with a glow of deep mandarin and chewing gum pink, transforming the lively streets into a place to pause and say, “Wow.”
“It’s so famous because it’s a magnificent sunset,” said Jackie Faherty, a senior scientist and astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History. “The sun beats down the grid of one of the largest cities, if not the largest city in the world, and touches the entire aisle of the concrete jungle with these amazing golden hues. It’s a beautiful thing.”
When is Manhattanhenge?
You will have four opportunities to see it: twice in the spring and twice in the summer, at each end of the summer solstice on the longest day of the year, June 21st.
This long Memorial Day weekend, Manhattanhenge takes place twice:
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Sunday, May 29, noon at 8:13 p.m. Eastern Time.
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Monday, May 30, full sun at 8:12 p.m.
Then, in July, you will have two more opportunities to see a perfect sunset on the grill:
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Monday, July 11, full sun at 8:20 p.m.
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Tuesday, July 12, noon at 8:21 p.m.
What is the difference between half sun and full sun?
According to Dr. Faherty, is a small but significant distinction: the middle sun will look like the sun is cut in half and only grazing the horizon, while the full sun, where the whole orb touches the pavement, is the real star of the show.
Why is Manhattanhenge happening?
We can witness this celestial event thanks to a combination of the approach of the summer solstice, the design of the city grid and the natural shape that the island of Manhattan took during the last ice age.
About 18,000 years ago, the massive ice sheet of the North American peak began to melt, sculpting the island of Manhattan and the modern landscape on which the city was built.
“We think the island of Manhattan goes from north to south. But it doesn’t really run north-south; it goes from northeast to southwest,” said Carol Krinksy, a historian of American architecture. New York University.
This orientation, combined with the design of the street, allows the setting sun to set this show, he said.
“The network system was designed for Manhattan before there was even an official New York City,” added Dr. Krinsky. The 1811 Plan of Commissioners launched 90-degree blocks for the official design of the city. Perhaps not surprisingly, this was mainly for the real estate market: most home buyers do not want to buy lots cut at strange angles.
Thus, above 14th Street and below 155th Street, the city is cut into a grid. When the Earth tilts toward the sun and then moves away from the sun during the summer solstice, our beloved Manhattanhenge is the result. It also shows how structures built by people interact with the natural world.
“Things like this are deeply connected not only to the actual architecture of the universe around us, but to our interaction with it,” said Caleb Scharf, an astronomer at Columbia University. “The city is an extension of us.”
Dr. Scharf adds that, like Stonehenge, Manhattanhenge helps us find patterns in our environment and make sense of them.
“At some point, someone will ask,‘ Why is this happening? ’” He said. Why that?’ This can often lead to those ‘Aha!’ moments when we suddenly have this need to really explain what we’re seeing, instead of just saying, ‘Oh, that’s fine.’ “
Where are the best places to see?
Fortunately, any place on the grid system above 14th Street can give you a kind of view.
You also have to have a clear view of New Jersey and, Dr. Faherty adds, “You really have to be in the middle of the street to get the full effect, which is a little dangerous.”
Ideally, you should choose a street with wide avenues and a median on which you can stand and watch safely. If there is a large hill, your view will be blocked.
Although almost everyone goes to 42nd Street, Dr. Faherty recommends 72nd Street. But if you want to join the crowds further downtown, Pershing Square is one of the best views, as is the area above Grand Central Station on the taxis. Although the New York City Police Department tries to close the display there every year, photographers pile up the location and it can be quite chaotic.
Manhattanhenge is also visible outside of Manhattan. In Brooklyn or Queens, Dr. Faherty says there are a variety of locations where you can see directly across the city to New Jersey. To enjoy the best off-island experience, I recommend Gantry State Park in Queens.