Why is there less daylight?

Why is there less daylight?

www.pprune.org

My own story...

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I was thinking the other day about something my late mother used to say the last few years when she would look up at the sky, "The sun doesn't look right."

After she said this, I began to notice that htere IS something different about it - the intensity, or the shadows it casts, even in summer...

So a couple of days ago, I found an online almanac and entered in Aug. 30, 2009 and the same date for 1990. I discovered that there is LESS sunlight time today. In fact, there are 3 fewer minutes of sunlight. The sunrise is one minute later and the sunset is 2 minutes earlier.

Anyone out there care to wager a guess as to what may be happening?

www.pprune.org
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by skycopilot


I'm ashamed to admit it, but here goes. That link was waaaaaaay over my head. Could you please translate for me. Time For Dummies

I forgot to add that I noticed the difference in the sun as well. It is not something one speaks of in mixed company, if you know what I mean.

[edit on 3-9-2009 by Hazelnut]

Well, somebody has to say it... the reason you're all noticing the sun looks different today from how it looked years ago is because you've damaged your eyesight from years of looking at the sun. You're not supposed to do that, you know?

Honestly though, it all has to do with the fact that we are never static in relation to our position to the sun, either rotationally or orbitally.

I have noticed something different about the sun a few years ago. It's the light intensity and color - a few years back, bright sunny summer day had the sun with a bit yellowish tint. Recently, the tint went away and the sunlight is... white. The intensity of other colors, like green leaves, is reduced.

Not many people notice it - most friends of mine and family think I'm crazy or played Crysis too much

edit - oh, someone told me that it's because I aged, and my eyesight changed during the years.

[edit on 3/9/2009 by relu84]

The earth wobbles on its axis, could that be the cause?

reply to post by relu84

I have noticed something different about the sun a few years ago. It's the light intensity and color - a few years back, bright sunny summer day had the sun with a bit yellowish tint. Recently, the tint went away and the sunlight is... white. The intensity of other colors, like green leaves, is reduced.

Well, the sun has felt odd in its heat for a couple of years. But I do agree about the startling whiteness of it especially first thing in the morning which I have never seen before. Frightened me the first time I saw it..lol
Now unless we are all going blind from being on computers too much...there may be something to it. And yes, like anything else, if you say 'the sun's not the same'..people tend to give a look of contempt and walk away muttering about listening to idiots on the Internet...lol

reply to post by superdebz


that is exactly what is going on. THE Earth wobbles on its axis this is called precession whicyh takes 26000years to complete. heres a link

precession

So in other words the Sun is a lot like me. Every now and again we both enjoy getting a little wobly...

Originally posted by skycopilot

Anyone out there care to wager a guess as to what may be happening?

Errr....wouldn't that emply that the earth was "wobbling" on it's axis? (since it was born).

Watch a "gyroscope" in action. it has 1 fixed axis and still wobbles. Ya think we are more stable with NO fixed axis?

shock-horror.....life goes on.............
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Great read in the O.P. by the way, I wish it was longer, S&F for you.

[edit on 3/9/2009 by nerbot]

Originally posted by skycopilot
Anyone out there care to wager a guess as to what may be happening?

Why is it these days at ATS that when someone asks a serious question we get such 'intelligent' replies?



To skycopilot..

you are not the only one who has noticed this...

Why the Sun seems to be 'dimming'

We are all seeing rather less of the Sun, according to scientists who have been looking at five decades of sunlight measurements.

newsvote.bbc.co.uk...

They have reached the disturbing conclusion that the amount of solar energy reaching the Earth's surface has been gradually falling.

newsvote.bbc.co.uk...

Solar physicists report paradox: Less sunlight, but temps rise ...
Less sunlight reaching the Earth's surface has not translated into cooler temperatures, ... 2. That's a different effect. The sun's output is increasing. ...
www.democraticunderground.com...

Baffled Scientists Say Less Sunlight Reaching Earth
www.flyertalk.com...

NASA - Solar Wind Loses Power, Hits 50-year Low
Sep 23, 2008 ... 23, 2008: In a briefing today at NASA headquarters, solar physicists announced that the solar wind is losing power. ...
science.nasa.gov...

NASA - How Low Can It Go? Sun Plunges into the Quietest Solar ...
Apr 1, 2009 ... Credit: SOHO, NASA/ESA. The sunspot cycle is behaving a little like the ... drop in solar wind pressure since the mid-1990s—the lowest point ...
www.nasa.gov...

NASA - A Giant Breach in Earth's Magnetic Field
Dec 16, 2008 ... Space physicists have long believed that holes in Earth's magnetosphere open only in response to solar magnetic fields that point south. ...
science.nasa.gov...

So things are not 'normal' on the sun... by normal I mean in our recorded history

Interestingly, the website I used - www.sunrisesunset.com...
is not available.

The sunrise for Aug. 30th this year was 6:46AM
The sunset was 7:43 PM.

Sunrise for 8/30/1990 was 6:45 AM
And sunset was 7:45 PM.

One minute earlier and 2 minutes later or a loss of 3 minutes.

Well, as you get older you eyesight changes and deteriorates and / or you always remember things differently.

That, plus the fact that the earth wobbles ever so slightly which (as has been said) seems like a good reason for short-term variations. Of course, on the other side of the world they may have slightky more daylight! In the long term it probably corrects itself - on the inverse of the wobble - so to speak.

Regards

reply to post by nerbot


My dear dude , it is 6:30 pm in the East and night time is falling. It wasnt like that before, you know

Not once this Summer have we had a long day, i remember we had up to 9:30 at night, i remember, because the Drive Inn Movies wouldnt start before because of the daylight glare.

Things have definatly changed. And i wouldnt attribute it to my eyesight going......

Good to see you!

reply to post by skycopilot


Perhaps the reason some of us non-scientisits notice these things is we are are "introverts" or introspective. We tend to like quiet, and the lack of noise leaves us with our thoughts.

By being 'thoughtful' we tend to notice things that others are oblivious to. I think this is where a lot of threads about having "feelings" something is about to happen, come from.

It's not so much we are looking for clues as it is the clues jump out at us. Of course there is always the danger of 'reading facts' into something. But I would still like someone to speculate as to why the actual time, as we count time, for daylight is diminishing.

Originally posted by skycopilot

One minute earlier and 2 minutes later or a loss of 3 minutes.

You didn't lose those minutes. They moved to March.
Precession. Drives astrologers nuts.

reply to post by skycopilot


Doesn't that mean, if someone was doing the same measurements on the opposite side of the Planet, would they report the daytime was 3 mins longer, assuming it is indeed down to the earth axis tilt that is, any way to check?

I know this is the coldest and worst summer I have ever witnessed, so bad in fact I had to cancel our Holidays, now we are just going to take it a day at a time and do overnight camping trips instead, deciding on the days the weather is fit enough.

Last night around 6.30pm, driving along the Mersey, there was fog, and the worst rain I have ever seen at this time of year, fog on the Mersey in September, I have never ever heard of it happening before, got a few people yacking about it.

reply to post by dgtempe


Maybe these long days over here have something to do with it. :lol

The "wobble" gets bigger......

We're doooooooooomed!

Good to see you too.

Looks like this is "the end" then.....lol

Maybe the dinosaurs were made extinct by the regular "super-wobble" and they all got blasted into space by centrifugal force.

Glad I'm a lightweight..

[edit on 3/9/2009 by nerbot]

I've also think I noticed something different about the sun, but it may just because I'm getting older or something. Anyway, usually in warm weather.

It used to seem that when I was standing in the sun and then walked to a shaded area it would gradually get cooler as you stepped in the cooler shaded area but the shade would still have a decent level of warmth to it.

Now to me it seems that if I'm standing in the sun it's bearing down on me like a directional heat lamp. Like a spotlight or something. Now it feels like it just wants to cook you alive or something.

Then when you step in the shade there's no gradual change. It's just an abrupt change. The difference is so huge it's almost cold in the shade.

But it's probably just me. Doesn't do this when it's humid though. When it's humid it's just plain hot and miserable everywhere just like it always was.

What it comes down to though is it feels like the direct sunlight is just more intense and strong than it was before which would make the shade seem even cooler relatively.

reply to post by tinfoilman


You mean it (the sun) isn't as "gentle" anymore?

You're damn right!