Residents of Alaska’s northernmost town will work and sleep beneath a “midnight sun” until Aug. 2, multiple news outlets report.
Utqiagvik, Alaska — formerly known as Barrow — sits about 320 miles north of the Arctic Circle, making it one of the few American communities to experience 84 consecutive days of round-the-clock daylight. The sun made its last dip below the horizon early Sunday and won’t set again until Aug. 2.
The phenomenon occurs near the summer solstice, when the tilt of the North Pole makes the sun appear in the sky continuously without setting. All locations north of the Arctic Circle experience some version of it.
Other Alaskan communities are also affected. Areas near Fairbanks, which sits just below the Arctic Circle, will see 24 hours of daylight for about 70 days, while Anchorage can expect 16 to 19 hours of sunlight per day.
For Utqiagvik locals, the endless daylight often means shifting outdoor activities to later in the evening. Come winter, they’ll face the opposite extreme — 64 consecutive days with no sunlight at all.
