Dear Tom,
What is the difference between sunrise and daybreak? Recently, sunrise was at 6:51 a.m. while daybreak was at 6:21 a.m.
Richard Waller, Chicago, Ill.
Dear Richard,
The difference in the times of sunrise and daybreak is due to their very different definitions, and the English language offers several terms to describe the daily phenomenon of the sun’s appearance on the eastern horizon.
Daybreak, also called dawn or the glow of dawn, begins with the first appearance of light about a half hour before the sun comes up. It results from the scattering of sunlight reaching the upper atmosphere prior to the sun’s rise to the horizon. Sunrise is the instant when the top of the sun just appears on the sea-level horizon. The whole interval of time between daybreak and sunrise is known as morning twilight or morning dusk.
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His weather forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN News at noon and 9 p.m.
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