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Solar Light Sun Exposure Plotter – Online Daily Direct Sun Check

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Solar Light Sun Exposure Plotter

Daily Direct Sun Check – Know exactly when sunlight hits your location

Surroundings:
No custom obstacles added yet.
Solar Elevation Timeline
Sun Path Direct Sun Blocked
Sun Path Polar View
Azimuth & Elevation profile
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Sunrise
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Sunset
--
Direct Sun Hours
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Solar Noon
--°
Max Elevation
--
Total Daylight
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Golden Hour (Photography)

Morning: -- | Evening: --

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Blue Hour (Twilight)

Morning: -- | Evening: --

Frequently Asked Questions

A Sun Exposure Plotter helps you visualize exactly when and where direct sunlight falls on a specific location throughout the day. This is invaluable for gardeners planning plant placement, photographers scouting golden hour shoots, homebuyers evaluating property sunlight, solar panel installers assessing roof exposure, and architects designing passive solar buildings. By factoring in surrounding obstacles like buildings and trees, you get a realistic picture of actual sun exposure.

Our tool uses NOAA solar position algorithms (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) which are accurate to within ±0.5° for solar elevation and azimuth. These calculations account for the Earth's elliptical orbit, axial tilt, and atmospheric refraction. For most practical purposes—gardening, photography, real estate—this accuracy is more than sufficient. The tool automatically adjusts for your location's latitude, longitude, and UTC offset.

Golden Hour occurs when the sun is between 0° and 10° above the horizon—shortly after sunrise and before sunset. The sunlight is warm, soft, and diffused, creating long shadows and flattering tones prized by photographers. Blue Hour happens during civil twilight when the sun is 0° to -6° below the horizon, producing cool, saturated blue skies. Both periods are marked on our charts so you can plan shoots or simply enjoy these magical times of day.

Obstacles—buildings, trees, hills—block direct sunlight when their angular height (elevation) exceeds the sun's elevation at a given azimuth. For example, if a 15° tall building sits at 120°-150° azimuth (southeast), it will block morning sun during hours when the sun is in that direction and below 15°. Our tool lets you add custom obstacles with specific azimuth ranges and elevation angles, then visually shows blocked vs. available sunlight on the timeline chart.

Sunrise and sunset times change due to the Earth's 23.5° axial tilt and its elliptical orbit around the Sun. During summer in your hemisphere, the days are longer because your location tilts toward the Sun. The Equation of Time—a correction up to ±16 minutes—also affects exact times because the Earth's orbit isn't perfectly circular. Our calculator accounts for all these factors. Try selecting different dates to see how the sun path shifts dramatically between summer and winter!

Absolutely! By visualizing the sun's path and factoring in obstacles, you can identify shading patterns that might reduce solar panel efficiency. The "Direct Sun Hours" metric shows exactly how many hours of unobstructed sunlight your location receives on any given date. For a complete solar assessment, check multiple dates across seasons—especially the winter solstice (shortest day) when shadows are longest and sun angles are lowest. This helps optimize panel placement and tilt angles.

Daylight hours (or daylength) is the total time between sunrise and sunset—when the sun is above the theoretical horizon. Direct sun hours is the subset of that time when sunlight actually reaches your specific location, accounting for obstacles. In an open field, these are nearly identical. But in an urban canyon with tall buildings, you might only get 3-4 hours of direct sun even though daylight lasts 12+ hours. Our tool calculates both so you can see the real-world impact of your surroundings.

To estimate an obstacle's elevation angle, use the clinometer method: stand at your target location, extend your arm fully, and use your fist (about 10° across) to measure how many "fists" above the horizon the obstacle rises. Alternatively, use a smartphone clinometer app. For buildings, you can calculate: elevation = arctan(building_height / distance_to_building). For example, a 10m building 30m away has an elevation angle of about 18°. Enter this as the obstacle's elevation in our tool.
Pro Tips
  • Photographers: Check the Golden Hour timings and plan shoots when the sun is between 0°–10° for warm, dramatic light.
  • Gardeners: Use this tool across seasons—many plants need 6+ hours of direct sun (full sun) while shade plants thrive with less.
  • Solar Panels: Winter solstice is the worst-case scenario. If you get good exposure then, you're set year-round.
  • Real Estate: Compare sun exposure at different times of year before committing to a property.
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