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Sunset

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A red sunset panorama
A red sunset panorama

Sunset, also called sundown in some American English dialects, is the time at which the Sun disappears below the horizon in the west. It should not be confused with dusk, which is the (variously defined) point at which darkness falls (some time after the Sun itself sets).

As sunrise and sunset are calculated from the leading and trailing edges of the Sun, and not the center; this slightly increases the duration of "day" relative to "night".

Because the light from the Sun is bent by the variable density of the Earth's atmosphere, the Sun is still seen after it is below the horizon. This effect is a daily illusion along with sunrise.

The red-hued sky at sunset is explained by the phenomenon of Rayleigh scattering. The sunset is often more brightly coloured than the sunrise because there is more dust at the end of the day than at its beginning.

Sunclipse is a term, according to Allegra Fuller Snyder, collectively coined by Buckminster Fuller's family and used to express the last sighting of the sun in the evening. As the sun actually neither rises nor sets, the terms "sunrise" and "sunset" were anathema to Fuller. The term used to replace "sunrise" is sunsight.

Sunset is a symbol of ending, closure and old age.

Other meanings

  • Sunset is the name of a famous street ("Sunset Boulevard") in Los Angeles, California.

More images

A yellow sunset
A yellow sunset
Lipa Noi Beach on Ko Samui, Thailand
Lipa Noi Beach on Ko Samui, Thailand
Purple-red sunset
Purple-red sunset
Death Valley sunset
A red sunset
A red sunset
Sunclipse on Mars: Mars Pathfinder's image, from NASA
Sunclipse on Mars: Mars Pathfinder's image, from NASA
Sunset at sea
Sunset at sea
Another yellow sunset
Another yellow sunset

de:Sonnenuntergang nl:Zonsondergang

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