New Yorkers have witnessed an urban solar phenomenon, with the Sun setting in alignment with the city's skyscrapers and giving an effect fans say is reminiscent of Wiltshire's Stonehenge. Welcome to Manhattanhenge.
Twice every year amateur photographers gather in carefully-selected spots to set up tripods and wait to capture the ultimate sunset.
On Wednesday night at 2025 local time (0125 BST), the east-west lying streets of the city's famous grid system neatly framed the setting sun, creating golden glows New Yorkers rarely see.
During the phenomenon, the Sun appears to be nestled perfectly between the skyscraper corridors, illuminating the north and south sides of the streets.
Crowds shoot down a crowded street Crowds gather for photographs on 34th Street
Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson coined the term Manhattanhenge in 1996, inspired by its likeness to Stonehenge, where the sun aligns with concentric circles of vertical stones on each of the solstices.
"As a kid, I visited Stonehenge in the Salisbury Plain of England and did research on other stone monuments across the British Isles. It was deep within me," says deGrasse Tyson.
"So I was, in a way, imprinted by the emotional power that terrestrial alignments with the Sun can have on a culture or civilization."
After coining the term, deGrasse Tyson later published dates and times in Natural History magazine. ...
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Originally Posted by SarasotaRepub
