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Does the Sun Set at the Same Location Every Day?

As a result of the rotation of the Earth the sun sets every evening, which simply means it slowly disappears from sight below the horizon. Some places above or below the Arctic and Antarctic circles do not experience sunsets at various times of the year and the sun remains visible over a 24-hour period. Sunset is not the same as dusk, which is the period when darkness sets in and occurs when the sun is well below the horizon.

Horizon
- The sun never rises or sets in the same place every day. However, it does always rise in the east and set in the west. This is because a sunrise or sunset is caused by the rotation of the Earth and the sun itself never moves. The sun -- in comparison to the earth -- is stationary and it's the Earth's movement that makes the sun appear to someone on Earth as if it appears to arc across the sky from horizon to horizon.
Tilt
- The Earth is tilted on its axis by approximately 23 degrees. This means that as it rotates around the sun sometimes the North Pole is pointed toward the sun and sometimes it points away from it. When it is pointed toward the sun during the day, the landmass of North America is closer to the sun and it is summer. This means that the sun rises higher into the sky than in winter and is more directly overhead -- and closer and hotter -- than in winter, when it is rises and sets lower in the sky and arcs across the sky closer to the horizon. It is further away and therefore the climate is cooler.
Tropics
- About 23 degrees below and above the equator are the tropic lines -- the Tropic of Cancer being north of the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn being south. Because of the tilt of the Earth, the sun's position in relation to the earth moves from being directly above the Tropic of Cancer to being directly above the Tropic of Capricorn -- halfway between these times it is directly over the equator. Around June 21 it is directly over the Tropic of Cancer and around December 21 it is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn.
Solstice
- In the Northern Hemisphere, when the sun is directly over the Tropic of Cancer, it is the highest point of summer and is also known as the longest day, because the sun is visible for longer than at any other time. This is the summer solstice and the sun will set at a point on the horizon that will then slowly change as the earth slowly tilts back towards the winter solstice. Then the sunset will begin to work its way back day by day to the original point of sunset of the summer solstice.

Astrology