We're losing roughly 90 seconds of daylight per day, which means the sun is setting earlier and earlier. We have lost about 30 minutes of daylight on the tail end of the day.

The loss of daylight has become noticeable for some and the last 8 p.m. sunset of 2021 has already come and gone.


What You Need To Know

  • Monday was Tampa's last 8 p.m. sunset of 2021

  • We're losing about 90 seconds of daylight per day

  • Tampa's earliest sunset occurs in December

  • The next 8 p.m. sunset arrives on April 24, 2022

We can't speak for everyone, but some out there are looking forward to the cooler days in the months to come. Any signs of seasonal change can spark some of that excitement. We have already seen Halloween decor for sale in local stores and pumpkin-spiced coffee has returned to some local coffee shops.

Our temperatures don't really start to cool down until October. It's still far away and we still have the peak of hurricane season to get through.

However, one of the earliest signs of seasonal change is the loss of daylight. Monday, August 23 marked Tampa's last 8 p.m. sunset of 2021. Even though the sunset time doesn't mean much, some use it as a mental "mile marker" on the journey to the cooler, more comfortable months ahead. 

Tampa will not see another 8 p.m. sunset until April 24, 2022. 

Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves, though. We are still in the thick of summer, the heart of the rainy season and we still have a couple of months of hurricane season to get through.

It may surprise some of you that we have already lost an hour of daylight since the summer solstice on June 20, and at this rate, we are losing roughly 90 seconds of daylight per day.

Tampa receives its greatest loss of daylight per day around the time of the fall equinox, with nearly 100 seconds per day.

The fall equinox on September 22 is the day when we receive nearly equal amounts of daylight and darkness. This is when the sun’s rays are perpendicular to the equator, marking the first day of autumn for the Northern Hemisphere.