Are Sunsets Better In The Winter?

Have you ever noticed that sunsets seem richer, deeper and more dramatic in winter? That's not your imagination. There is real atmospheric science behind why cold-weather sunsets are better than their summertime counterparts.

According to meteorologist Rob Shackelford, it starts with where the sun sits in the sky this time of year. “The sun is actually at a lower angle in the sky compared to the summer,” he explained. That lower angle changes how sunlight travels through the atmosphere before it reaches your eyes. Plus, that lower sun means that sunsets are more gradual as the sun spends longer at the horizon.

Because the sun is lower in the sky, its light has a longer path to travel. “Sunlight is traveling through more of the atmosphere, which allows the blue light in sunlight to scatter, leaving only the reds and oranges,” Shackelford said.

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With much of the blue light scattered away, warmer colors are left behind: the fiery reds, oranges and pinks that make winter sunsets pop.

Summer sunsets, by comparison, are often quicker and less intense as the sun has a more direct path to the horizon and isn’t as gradual as winter. “During the summertime, the sun is actually at a higher position in the sky… As a result of that, you have a more brief sunset,” Shackelford said. With less time and distance for light to scatter, “you tend to see a little bit less intense sunsets during the summer.”

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Cold air also plays an important supporting role. Winter air typically holds less moisture, Shackelford explained. “There tends to be less humidity in the wintertime, which means there’s less particles in the air to impact light as it’s traveling through the atmosphere.” That clearer air helps sunsets appear crisper and more vivid.

Winter sunsets may also look bigger, especially near the horizon. Part of that is an optical illusion. “There’s a term called the Ponzo illusion,” Shackelford said, explaining that your brain compares the sun to familiar objects like trees and buildings, making it appear larger.

Atmospheric effects can add to that illusion too. He explained that temperature inversions, like Fata Morgana "distort stuff at the horizon, which is why sometimes the sun can have this kind of effect on its edges, looks a lot bigger.”

Even the winter landscape helps amplify the effect. With bare trees and less foliage, “you’re just looking at this giant beautiful sun right on the horizon,” Shackelford said.

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Clouds, when they’re in just the right place, can make winter sunsets even better. “In the winter you tend to have more clouds at the middle and high levels,” Shackelford explained. Those clouds act like reflectors, sending the reds and oranges down to ground level, where you are.

The most jaw-dropping sunsets happen when everything lines up perfectly. “The best situations are when you have middle and high-level clouds and a little area of clear right at the horizon,” Shackelford said. That combination concentrates the colors right where your eyes are drawn.

Despite all of this, winter sunsets are often overlooked. “I do think that winter is an underrated time to see sunsets,” he said, noting that they happen earlier, when people are still working and require more effort to witness by heading out into the cold.

But that effort pays off. “They do tend to pop, they’re a little bit more intense, a little bit more dramatic, just beautiful.”