Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board How'd you pick you handle?

KevinR, Interesting. It looks like Cadillac grabs the earliest sunrise from Katahdin, but not for the whole year. Just like the seasons affect the case for the last sunset, they seem to affect the case for the first sunrise.

The Naval Observatory had this to say about the first sunrise on just Jan 1 (not the rest of the year), "If the territories are not included the earliest sunrise is ... at the summit of Cadillac Mountain, Maine (44° 21' N 68° 13' W). ... For those who thought it would be the peak of Katahdin Mountain, Maine, the Sun rises there 1 minute later at 12:07 UT or 7:07 EST." http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/first_sunrise.html#US

Katahdin (45° 54' N) is further north than Cadillac (44° 21' N). Because of this and because Katahdin's sunrise was only a minute later than Cadillac's on Jan 1, in the good ol' summertime it looks like Katahdin has an earlier sunrise than Cadillac. (I didn't check real carefully but it sure looks that way.)

"At 1,532 feet, Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park is the highest point along the North Atlantic seaboard (see photos) and is the first place to view sunrise in the United States from October 7 through March 6." http://www.acadiamagic.com/CadillacMountain.html

Again, I didn't check real carefully but it appears that Cadillac Mountain and Mt. Katahdin take turns having the earliest sunrise. Cadillac from October 7 to March 6, and Katahdin from March 7 to October 6. However, Porcupine Mountain has been mentioned as a close contender with Cadillac on Jan 1. Porcupine has a latitude of 44° 57' which is slightly north of Cadillac, so Porcupine might have the earliest sunrise for awhile after March 6 and for awhile before October 7. Not sure.

Bob K. - Thanks for fleshing that out a bit. It hadn't occurred to me first rays might vary depending upon the time of year, but seeing the pics in a previous post of the effects of the earth's 'wobble' makes it apparent that it does, so Katahdin may indeed be the first at certain times during the year.

As a long-time New Englander and recent transplant to the upper Mojave, I was a bit startled by the Katahdin reference, as that's a rather standard claim made around Acadia NP, where Cadillac is located. Another statement frequently heard is that Cadillac has the highest headwall north of Brazil - don't know whether that one's accurate either, or just marketing spin.

I haven't plotted anything out, but I can't imagine that any place in Maine catches first light in the winter -- when there might be 8-9 hours of daylight -- before some place on the east coast of Florida, which might catch 11 hours or so. Ditto for last light in Washington state vs. Southern California.

Back to the original "handle" topic: I came by Pokey honestly -- that was what my grandmother called me several decades ago, and it seemed appropriate for my approach to climbing/hiking in the high country. Since Pokey was already taken on this board -- hi, fellow Poke(s) -- I tagged on an easy-to-remember five-digit number that could represent either a birthday or a zip code. Neat element of mystery, eh?

Phil

Pokey92544, After reading your message I looked into the east coast of Florida for Dec 21 and I was surprised to find that the sunrise occurs there at a time very close to the time on Cadillac Mountain. To check into this I used a website that calculates the time of sunrise but doesn't include elevation considerations: http://www.srrb.noaa.gov/highlights/sunrise/sunrise.html

On Dec 21, 2007, for Miami the sunrise is at 7:03 AM EST. For the lat/long of Cadillac Mountain the sunrise is at 7:06 AM EST if it was at the same elevation as Miami. However, when we take into account the 1528' elevation of Cadillac Mountain, then a rough calculation adjusts the sunrise to 7:03 AM EST. A tie. Amazing that two places so far apart could be so close.

The Naval Observatory picked Cadillac Mountain for the Jan 1 sunrise which is just 11 days later. I wonder if they even considered Miami since they didn't mention it as a close contender. For the Jan 1, 2008 sunrise I get 7:06 AM EST for Cadillac Mountain and 7:07 AM EST for Miami.