Day lenghts
The sun does not shine in the same way everywhere on earth: Because of the inclination of the earth axis to the sun, the position of the sun changes in the course of the year.
During June (Northern summer), the north pole is turned towards the sun, and the sun shines there for 24 hours per day: it is Polar day. At the same time, the sun does not shine at all at the South Pole: then, Polar night prevails there. In December, the opposite occurs: the South Pole experiences Polar day and the North Pole Polar night. This also leads to the seasons.
Between both Poles, the daily lengths also change.
You can observe this in the following picture series for nine sample locations. These pictures are meteograms: they show the weather of the coming 6 days and nights: the temperature in the highest block, the precipitation in second, clouds in third and wind in the fourth block - for a defined place. The vertical yellow bars in the background show the daily length at this palce.
The following nine meteograms are arranged around the globe - from the north to the south. The places are always spaced 20 degrees of latitude apart (see Figure 1).
During June (Northern summer), the north pole is turned towards the sun, and the sun shines there for 24 hours per day: it is Polar day. At the same time, the sun does not shine at all at the South Pole: then, Polar night prevails there. In December, the opposite occurs: the South Pole experiences Polar day and the North Pole Polar night. This also leads to the seasons.
Between both Poles, the daily lengths also change.
You can observe this in the following picture series for nine sample locations. These pictures are meteograms: they show the weather of the coming 6 days and nights: the temperature in the highest block, the precipitation in second, clouds in third and wind in the fourth block - for a defined place. The vertical yellow bars in the background show the daily length at this palce.
The following nine meteograms are arranged around the globe - from the north to the south. The places are always spaced 20 degrees of latitude apart (see Figure 1).
| In the left column (Examples), the meteograms from July and January are displayed: they show the difference between summer and winter. The right column displays LIVE meteograms, which show today's day lengths in each place - and these change daily. Now, it depends on which season we have: In June and July, as well as in December and January, you will recognise a LIVE polar day or polar night in the north and in the south . You can also see how the daily length changes from north to south today (right column) and in the course of the yearly (left column). |
Place | Examples: | LIVE meteograms |
| 
meteogram:
Barentsburg (78.07°N / 14.23°E) |
| 
meteogram:
Oslo (59.92°N / 10.75°E) |
| 
meteogram:
Nuoro (40.32°N / 9.33°E) |
| 
meteogram:
Tamgak (19.04°N / 8.46°E) |
| 
meteogram:
Libreville (0.38°N / 9.45°E) |
| 
meteogram:
Sesfontein (-19.13°N / 13.62°E) |
| 
meteogram:
S.Atlantic 40°S 10°E (-40.00°N / 10.00°E) |
| 
meteogram:
S.Atlantic 60°S 10°E (-60.00°N / 10.00°E) |
| 
meteogram:
Antarktis (-80.00°N / 10.00°E) |
How long are the days on the North and South Pole, compared to the equator?
Are the daylengths different from those in January and July? If yes, how much, and why?
Compare the temperatures with the sunshine hours. Is there a connection?
Why do the temperatures in the proximity of the equator react more to the sunshine then on the poles?
Pay attention to the the cloudy cover, when looking at the temperatures. What happens with the temperature under a closed cloudy cover?
Are the daylengths different from those in January and July? If yes, how much, and why?
Compare the temperatures with the sunshine hours. Is there a connection?
Why do the temperatures in the proximity of the equator react more to the sunshine then on the poles?
Pay attention to the the cloudy cover, when looking at the temperatures. What happens with the temperature under a closed cloudy cover?