Due east only at the equinoxes
The sun rises exactly due east and sets exactly due west only around the March and September equinoxes. After the March equinox its rising point moves north along the horizon day by day; after the September equinox it moves south.
In the northern hemisphere that means a summer sunrise in the north-east and a summer sunset in the north-west, and a winter sunrise in the south-east with a sunset in the south-west. In the southern hemisphere the seasons swap, but the geometry is the same.
How far it swings depends on your latitude
At the equator the rising point swings 23½° either side of east through the year. The further from the equator you live, the wider the swing: in London or Berlin the sun rises about 40° north of east at midsummer and about 40° south of east at midwinter — from north-east to south-east, a quarter of the whole horizon. Near the Arctic Circle the summer sun rises almost in the north.
The direction is given as an azimuth: degrees clockwise from north, so 90° is due east, 180° south and 270° west. A sunrise at 50° is north-east; a sunset at 230° is south-west.
Find the direction for your city
Every city page shows today’s sunrise and sunset direction as an azimuth and a compass point, next to the times. It is the number a photographer needs to know which street will line up with the setting sun, and the one a gardener or a house-hunter needs for a window.
Why it moves at all
The earth’s axis is tilted by about 23.4° to its orbit. As the earth goes round the sun, the sun appears to climb north of the celestial equator for half the year and south of it for the other half, and the point where it crosses your horizon follows it. The days get longer as the rising point moves towards your pole, because the sun then has a longer path across the sky.
Questions and answers
Does the sun always rise in the east?
It always rises in the eastern half of the sky, but exactly due east only around the equinoxes in March and September. In summer it rises north of east, in winter south of east (in the northern hemisphere).
Where does the sun set in winter?
In the northern hemisphere, in the south-west. The further north you are, the further south of west it sets.
