- On 17 October 2026 the sun rises in Tromsø at 08:02 and sets at 16:57 local time (UTC+2).
- The day in Tromsø lasts 8 h 54 min on 17 October 2026, 8 min 46 s shorter than the day before.
- Solar noon in Tromsø is at 12:30, when the sun stands 11.2° above the horizon.
- Tromsø has 68 days of midnight sun and 48 days of polar night in 2026.
- Days in Tromsø start getting longer after 21 December and shorter after 21 June.
What counts as sunrise and sunset?
Sunrise is the moment the upper edge of the sun appears on the horizon; sunset is the moment it disappears. Because the air bends light, the sun is seen while its centre is still 0.83° below the horizon, and the times on this page include that. Day length is the time between the two. Hills, buildings and weather change what you actually see by a few minutes.
The sun today in Tromsø, from dawn to night
Every stage of the day by the clock: three kinds of dawn, sunrise, solar noon, sunset and three kinds of dusk.
| Stage | Time | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Astronomical dawn | 04:39 | The sky stops being fully dark; the sun is 18° below the horizon. |
| Nautical dawn | 05:50 | The horizon at sea becomes visible; the sun is 12° below. |
| Civil dawn, first light | 07:00 | Light enough to be outside without lamps; the sun is 6° below. |
| Sunrise | 08:02 | The upper edge of the sun appears on the horizon. |
| Morning golden hour ends | 09:41 | The sun climbs above 6° and the light turns white. |
| Solar noon | 12:30 | The sun is at its highest point of the day, 11.2° above the horizon. |
| Evening golden hour begins | 15:19 | The sun drops below 6°; light turns warm and shadows long. |
| Sunset | 16:57 | The upper edge of the sun disappears below the horizon. |
| Civil dusk, last light | 17:59 | Street lamps are needed; the sun is 6° below the horizon. |
| Nautical dusk | 19:09 | The horizon at sea can no longer be seen; the sun is 12° below. |
| Night begins | 20:20 | Astronomical dusk: the sky is fully dark, the sun is 18° below. |
Sunrise and sunset times in Tromsø: the next 14 days
The change column shows how much each day gains or loses against the day before.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today, 17 OctToday | 08:02 | 16:57 | 8 h 54 min | −8 min 46 s |
| Sun 18 OctSun 18 Oct | 08:06 | 16:52 | 8 h 45 min | −8 min 49 s |
| Mon 19 OctMon 19 Oct | 08:11 | 16:48 | 8 h 37 min | −8 min 51 s |
| Tue 20 OctTue 20 Oct | 08:15 | 16:43 | 8 h 28 min | −8 min 53 s |
| Wed 21 OctWed 21 Oct | 08:19 | 16:39 | 8 h 19 min | −8 min 56 s |
| Thu 22 OctThu 22 Oct | 08:24 | 16:34 | 8 h 10 min | −8 min 59 s |
| Fri 23 OctFri 23 Oct | 08:28 | 16:29 | 8 h 1 min | −9 min 2 s |
| Sat 24 OctSat 24 Oct | 08:32 | 16:25 | 7 h 52 min | −9 min 5 s |
| Sun 25 OctSun 25 Oct | 07:37 | 15:20 | 7 h 43 min | −9 min 8 s |
| Mon 26 OctMon 26 Oct | 07:41 | 15:15 | 7 h 33 min | −9 min 11 s |
| Tue 27 OctTue 27 Oct | 07:46 | 15:10 | 7 h 24 min | −9 min 15 s |
| Wed 28 OctWed 28 Oct | 07:50 | 15:06 | 7 h 15 min | −9 min 19 s |
| Thu 29 OctThu 29 Oct | 07:55 | 15:01 | 7 h 5 min | −9 min 23 s |
| Fri 30 OctFri 30 Oct | 08:00 | 14:56 | 6 h 56 min | −9 min 27 s |
Day length in Tromsø in 2026, month by month
Sunrise, sunset and day length on the first day of each month. Clock changes for summer time are included.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January | — | — | 0 h 0 min |
| 1 February | 09:26 | 14:29 | 5 h 3 min |
| 1 March | 07:11 | 16:42 | 9 h 30 min |
| 1 April | 05:50 | 19:47 | 13 h 56 min |
| 1 May | 03:21 | 22:02 | 18 h 40 min |
| 1 June | — | — | 24 h 0 min |
| 1 July | — | — | 24 h 0 min |
| 1 August | 02:21 | 23:20 | 20 h 59 min |
| 1 September | 05:00 | 20:28 | 15 h 27 min |
| 1 October | 06:58 | 18:10 | 11 h 11 min |
| 1 November | 08:09 | 14:46 | 6 h 37 min |
| 1 December | — | — | 0 h 0 min |
Equinoxes and solstices 2026
The four turning points of the year, with the time in this city’s zone (UTC+2) and the length of that day.
| Event | Date | Time | Day length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring equinox (March) | 20 March | 15:45 UTC+1 | 12 h 13 min |
| Summer solstice (June) | 21 June | 10:24 UTC+2 | 24 h 0 min |
| Autumn equinox (September) | 23 September | 02:05 UTC+2 | 12 h 19 min |
| Winter solstice (December) | 21 December | 21:50 UTC+1 | 0 h 0 min |
The longest and shortest day in Tromsø
Tromsø lies above the Arctic Circle. In 2026 the sun stays above the horizon around the clock on 68 days (the midnight sun) and does not rise at all on 48 days (the polar night). Between those periods day length changes faster than anywhere further south.
Why day length changes through the year
The Earth’s axis is tilted 23.44° to the plane of its orbit. For half of the year the northern hemisphere leans towards the sun and its days are longer than its nights; for the other half it leans away. On the two equinoxes, in March and September, day and night are nearly equal everywhere.
The further a place is from the equator, the bigger the swing. At the equator the day stays close to 12 hours all year. At 55° north it runs from about 7 hours in December to more than 17 in June. Beyond the polar circles the sun does not set for part of the summer and does not rise for part of the winter.
Day length changes fastest around the equinoxes and barely at all around the solstices, which is why the evenings seem to close in so quickly in autumn.
Civil, nautical and astronomical twilight
Twilight is the time when the sun is below the horizon but the sky is still lit. It is divided by how far below the horizon the sun is.
| Twilight | Today | Sun below horizon | What you can see |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil | 07:00–08:0216:57–17:59 | 0° to 6° | Enough light to read outside; the brightest planets appear. |
| Nautical | 05:50–07:0017:59–19:09 | 6° to 12° | The horizon is still visible at sea; bright stars are out. |
| Astronomical | 04:39–05:5019:09–20:20 | 12° to 18° | The sky looks dark to the eye; the faintest stars are still washed out. |
Golden hour today
Golden hour is the time just after sunrise and just before sunset, when the sun is less than 6° above the horizon and its light is warm and soft. In Tromsø the morning golden hour lasts from 08:02 to 09:41 today, and the evening one from 15:19 to sunset at 16:57. The blue hour follows sunset and ends around civil dusk, 17:59.
When do the days start getting longer?
In the northern hemisphere days start getting longer after the December solstice, on 21 December, and keep growing until the June solstice, on 21 June. After that they shorten again. The first gains are a few seconds a day; by the March equinox the day grows by several minutes every day.
Sunrise and sunset today by city
Questions people ask
What time is sunrise today in Tromsø?
On 17 October 2026 the sun rises in Tromsø at 08:02 local time (UTC+2). First light, the start of civil twilight, is at 07:00.
What time is sunset today in Tromsø?
On 17 October 2026 the sun sets in Tromsø at 16:57 local time. It stays light enough to be outside without lamps until civil dusk at 17:59.
How long is the day today?
In Tromsø the day lasts 8 h 54 min from sunrise to sunset on 17 October 2026, which is 8 min 46 s shorter than the day before.
When do the days start getting longer?
After the December solstice. In 2026 it falls on 21 December; from the next day each day is a little longer until the June solstice.
What is the longest day of the year in Tromsø?
Tromsø has the midnight sun: on 68 days of 2026 the sun does not set at all.
What is the difference between sunset and dusk?
Sunset is a moment: the sun’s upper edge goes below the horizon. Dusk is the end of the twilight that follows. Civil dusk comes when the sun is 6° below the horizon, usually 25 to 45 minutes after sunset in middle latitudes and longer further north.
Why is the earliest sunset not on the shortest day?
Solar noon drifts through the year by up to 16 minutes either way, because the Earth’s orbit is an ellipse and its axis is tilted. Around the December solstice noon moves later each day, so the earliest sunset comes about a week or two before the solstice and the latest sunrise a week or two after it.
Are the times the same every year?
Almost. On the same calendar date sunrise and sunset shift by up to a minute or two from year to year, mostly because of leap years. The tables on this page are calculated for the current year.
- NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory: Solar Calculator, equations for sunrise, sunset and solar noon.
- Jean Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms, 2nd ed., 1998 (solar coordinates; equinoxes and solstices, chapter 27).
- U.S. Naval Observatory: definitions of rise, set and twilight.
- IANA Time Zone Database (local time and summer time rules).
All times are calculated on the server from the city’s coordinates with the NOAA solar equations, for a flat horizon and standard atmospheric refraction, and shown in the city’s own time zone. They agree with almanacs to within a minute. The page is recalculated on every visit.