Daylight hours in Christchurch
Christchurch gets 15h 24m of daylight on its longest day in December, and 8h 58m on its shortest in June — a difference of 6h 26m across the year.
How fast the days change
Around 6 April, Christchurch gains or loses about 3.0 minutes of daylight every day.
Enough to notice over a fortnight, though the seasons arrive more gently here than further from the equator.
Sunrise and sunset by month
On the 15th of each month, in Pacific/Auckland local time, daylight saving included.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight | Solar noon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 06:07 | 21:10 | 15h 03m | 13:38 |
| February | 06:49 | 20:38 | 13h 49m | 13:43 |
| March | 07:25 | 19:51 | 12h 26m | 13:38 |
| April | 07:02 | 17:56 | 10h 55m | 12:29 |
| May | 07:36 | 17:15 | 9h 39m | 12:25 |
| June | 08:01 | 16:58 | 8h 58m | 12:29 |
| July | 07:58 | 17:12 | 9h 14m | 12:35 |
| August | 07:24 | 17:43 | 10h 19m | 12:34 |
| September | 06:32 | 18:17 | 11h 46m | 12:24 |
| October | 06:38 | 19:52 | 13h 14m | 13:15 |
| November | 05:55 | 20:32 | 14h 38m | 13:13 |
| December | 05:42 | 21:06 | 15h 24m | 13:24 |
Solstices and equinoxes
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 20 Mar | 07:31 | 19:42 | 12h 11m |
| June solstice | 21 Jun | 08:03 | 16:59 | 8h 56m |
| September equinox | 22 Sep | 06:19 | 18:25 | 12h 06m |
| December solstice | 21 Dec | 05:44 | 21:10 | 15h 26m |
The equinoxes give almost exactly twelve hours of daylight everywhere on earth — "almost" because sunrise is defined by the sun's upper edge rather than its centre, and the atmosphere bends its light over the horizon before it has really arrived. Both lengthen the day by a few minutes.
Other cities in New Zealand
Assumptions
- Sea-level horizon. Hills, mountains and buildings all delay sunrise and bring sunset forward, sometimes by a lot in a valley.
- Standard refraction. Sunrise is taken at −0.833°, allowing for the sun's disc and average atmospheric bending. Unusual air conditions shift it by a minute or two.
- Local clock time, with daylight saving applied from the IANA timezone database.