Sun position in Welkom

Where the sun stands over Welkom, South Africa (-27.9774°, 26.7351°) - today's sunrise, sunset, solar noon, day length and shadow length, plus the sun path across the whole year.

Open Welkom on the map See the numbers

Updated daily
Local time UTC+2
Free

Sun times in Welkom on 4 November 2026

Local time in Welkom, UTC+2, with no daylight saving time.
Sunrise	05:19	rises toward ESE (108°)
Solar noon	11:57	sun 77.5° above the horizon
Sunset	18:35	sets toward WSW (252°)
Day length	13 h 15 min
Civil dawn	04:54	first usable light
Civil dusk	18:59	last usable light
Golden hour, morning	05:19–05:51	warm low light
Golden hour, evening	18:02–18:35	warm low light
Shadow at noon	0.22 m	per metre of height

Times are computed for -27.9774°, 26.7351° and refreshed every day. For any other date, an exact azimuth or a shadow drawn on the map, open the interactive sun position map for Welkom.

The sun’s path over Welkom

How high the sun stands and where, from sunrise to sunset: today, at both solstices and at the equinox. The higher a curve climbs, the higher the sun; where a curve meets the bottom line, the sun rises or sets at that compass bearing.

Today, 4 November
21 June
Equinox, March and September
21 December

The sun's altitude against its compass bearing over Welkom. On 21 June the sun rises at 64° (ENE), climbs to 38.6° at solar noon and sets at 296° (WNW). On 21 December the sun rises at 117° (ESE), climbs to 85.5° at solar noon and sets at 243° (WSW).

The sun through the year in Welkom

Sunrise, sunset, day length, noon altitude and noon shadow on the 15th of each month, on the local clock
Month	Sunrise	Sunset	Day length	Noon altitude	Noon shadow
January	05:31	19:14	13 h 43 min	83.1°	0.1 m
February	05:56	18:58	13 h 02 min	74.6°	0.3 m
March	06:14	18:30	12 h 16 min	64.1°	0.5 m
April	06:30	17:56	11 h 25 min	52.2°	0.8 m
May	06:47	17:31	10 h 44 min	43.1°	1.1 m
June	07:02	17:25	10 h 23 min	38.7°	1.2 m
July	07:03	17:35	10 h 32 min	40.5°	1.2 m
August	06:44	17:51	11 h 07 min	48.0°	0.9 m
September	06:11	18:06	11 h 55 min	59.1°	0.6 m
October	05:37	18:21	12 h 44 min	70.6°	0.4 m
November	05:13	18:43	13 h 30 min	80.6°	0.2 m
December	05:11	19:05	13 h 54 min	85.3°	0.1 m

At the December solstice the midday sun reaches 85.5° above the horizon in Welkom and the day lasts 13 h 55 min. At the June solstice the sun climbs only to 38.6° and the day shrinks to 10 h 22 min. That difference is what decides whether a garden, a window or a solar array sees the sun in winter. The noon shadow column gives the length of the shadow of anything one metre tall.

Welkom through 2026 at a glance

The extremes of 2026, on the local clock
Longest day	21 December	13 h 55 min, 05:13–19:09
Shortest day	21 June	10 h 22 min, 07:04–17:26
Earliest sunrise	2 December	05:09
Latest sunrise	2 July	07:05
Earliest sunset	9 June	17:25
Latest sunset	10 January	19:14
Highest midday sun	21 December	85.5°
Lowest midday sun	21 June	38.6°
Sunrise direction	through the year	64° ENE (21 June) to 117° ESE (22 December)
Sunset direction	through the year	243° WSW (21 December) to 296° WNW (21 June)

At solar noon the sun in Welkom always stands due north, so the north side of a building, a garden or a roof is the one that gets the sun.
The earliest sunset is on 9 June, 12 days before the shortest day (21 June), and the latest sunrise on 2 July, 11 days after it. Solar noon drifts through the year, so the darkest afternoon and the darkest morning do not fall on the shortest day.
The longest day in Welkom is 3 h 33 min longer than the shortest, and around the equinoxes the days grow or shrink by up to 1.7 minutes a day.

The winter solstice 2026: the moment, and the shortest and the longest day, city by city →

When the days start getting longer: the earliest sunset, the latest sunrise and lighter evenings, city by city →

Planning around the sun in Welkom

Solar panels

At 28.0° S a fixed array facing due north collects the most over a year at a tilt of about 24°. Use the solar panel angle calculator with the coordinates -27.9774°, 26.7351° for the exact optimum, the seasonal optima and the loss from an east or west facing roof.

Buying a flat or a plot

At the June solstice the noon sun in Welkom sits 38.6° above the horizon, so every obstacle casts a shadow 1.3 times its own height at midday. Check what stands to the north before you commit: place the building on the map and read the shaded hours for 21 June.

Photography

Golden hour runs 05:19–05:51 in the morning and 18:02–18:35 in the evening today, and the sun sets toward WSW (252°). The golden hour calculator gives the same windows for any date, and the map’s alignment finder shows the days when the setting sun lines up with a street.

More on planning around the sun: which way a house, garden or balcony should face, how long golden hour lasts and why the earliest sunset comes before the shortest day.

Other cities

Near Welkom

On the same latitude

Welkom lies at 28.0° S. On the same parallel the longest and the shortest day last just as long and the noon sun climbs just as high, whatever the clocks say there:

Sunrise and sunset in all 10 cities in South Africa →

See all cities with sun position data →

Questions

Sun questions about Welkom

What time is sunrise and sunset in Welkom today?

On 4 November 2026 the sun rises at 05:19 and sets at 18:35 in Welkom (UTC+2), giving 13 h 15 min of daylight.

What time is solar noon in Welkom today?

Solar noon is at 11:57, when the sun stands due north, 77.5° above the horizon. It is the middle of the day by the sun and the moment shadows are shortest.

When is the longest day of the year in Welkom?

On 21 December, with 13 h 55 min between sunrise at 05:13 and sunset at 19:09.

When is the shortest day of the year in Welkom?

On 21 June, with 10 h 22 min between sunrise at 07:04 and sunset at 17:26.

How high does the sun get in Welkom?

At solar noon the sun reaches 85.5° on 21 December, its highest of the year, and only 38.6° on 21 June. Today it climbs to 77.5°.

In which direction does the sun rise and set in Welkom?

Due east and due west only around the equinoxes. Through the year sunrise swings between 64° (ENE) and 117° (ESE), and sunset between 243° (WSW) and 296° (WNW).

What is the best angle for solar panels in Welkom?

Facing due north (azimuth 0°) at a tilt of about 24° for the most energy over a year. A steeper tilt favours the winter months and a flatter one the summer.

When is the earliest sunset in Welkom?

On 9 June at 17:25, 12 days before the shortest day. The latest sunrise is on 2 July at 07:05, so the evenings start getting lighter before the mornings do.

When do the days start getting longer in Welkom?

Straight after the shortest day, 21 June, but slowly at first: by 30 June the day is only 1 minute longer, by 31 July 26 minutes longer and by 31 August 1 h 09 min longer. The evenings start getting lighter a little earlier, after the earliest sunset on 9 June.

What time does it get dark in Welkom in December?

On 1 December the sun sets at 18:56 and the sky is dark by about 19:22, when civil twilight ends. On 31 December sunset is at 19:13 and darkness at about 19:39.