Seasons and sky

Sunset

Direct answer

Sunset is the defined instant when the Sun's upper limb disappears below the observer's horizon under standard assumptions for refraction.

Sunset is the calculated disappearance of the Sun's upper edge below the horizon.

Seasons & Earth AlmanacThe Great Almanac DictionaryUpdated 2026-09-26

Get my personal reading

$0 today, then $12/month after 7 days. Cancel anytime.

At a glance

Found in: Seasons & Earth Almanac
Related: Astronomical Season, Meteorological Season, Equinox, Solstice

Four countrymen round a great flat sundial in a field under the sun, one sowing and one reaping — Earth and season · visual guide **Sunset**
Sunset is the calculated disappearance of the Sun's upper edge below the horizon.
A Sun-Earth orientation for seasonal, atmospheric, tidal, and terrestrial terms.

From the reference page to your own chart

What does your own chart say about you?

Choose love, work or purpose. Your reading is written from your chart. Your reading uses your own birth details.

Get my personal reading $0 today, then $12/month after 7 days. Cancel anytime.

Walk through Alex’s whole example first

The Road of AgesSee the turning points of your whole life, from your birth date See your road's shape

Prefer to explore first?

Member tools The 2026 book Lectures

The daily letter, free

One short letter at 7 each morning: the day’s theme read for your own chart.

The Road of AgesThe turning points of your whole life, from your own chart Walk my road

Free, by email

Your daily Almanac letter

One short letter at 7 each morning: the day’s theme read for your own chart, and one thing to do with it.

The story behind Sunset

Almanacs have long tabulated sunset for work, worship, navigation, lighting, and seasonal planning.

Why Sunset matters

Sunset begins the evening transition but is not the same as full darkness; civil, nautical, and astronomical twilight follow.

Sunset in practice: an example

A planet may become visible during twilight well after the listed sunset time.

Where readings of Sunset go wrong

A common error is to call sunset the start of complete night or ignore terrain and atmospheric variability.

Sources and editorial method

Research references used for this entry include:

U.S. Naval Observatory: Rise, Set, and Twilight Definitions - Definitions used by USNO for sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, and twilight.
U.S. Naval Observatory: Complete Sun and Moon Data - Authoritative astronomical data services for positions, phases, and rise and set events.

Source: The Great Almanac Dictionary
Category: Seasons & Earth Almanac
Last updated: 2026-09-26

Find local sunset and twilight

A definition tells you what it is; your own birth chart tells you what it means for you. The Oracle casts your real chart and answers for your love, your work, and your year ahead, in conversation. It opens with the 7-day Seeker trial.

Speak with the Oracle

Astronomical SeasonAn Astronomical Season runs from one equinox or solstice to the next. Meteorological SeasonA Meteorological Season is a three-month climatological grouping. EquinoxAn Equinox occurs when the Sun crosses the celestial equator. SolsticeA Solstice marks the Sun's greatest apparent northward or southward position. SunriseSunrise is the calculated first appearance of the Sun's upper edge at the horizon. TideA Tide is the recurring rise and fall of ocean level shaped mainly by lunar and solar gravity.

More in Seasons & Earth Almanac

From the reference page to your own chart

Every word here
is in your own chart.

A personal reading about love, work or purpose, written from your chart
A practical next step to consider
It opens with 7 days free, with the AI Oracle and daily guidance