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All the United States Hawaii Honolulu Sky Gate

Sky Gate

During the solar phenomenon "Lahaina Noon" this bendy, curvy sculpture forms a perfectly circular shadow on the ground.

Honolulu, Hawaii

Added By
Lew Blank
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Skygate from afar   brx0/CC BY-SA 2.0
Skygate from afar   brx0/CC BY-SA 2.0
Pole with no shadow on Lahaina noon   Daniel Ramirez/CC BY 2.0
  quitos123 / Atlas Obscura User
  quitos123 / Atlas Obscura User
  jlewcrumble0324 / Atlas Obscura User
Crowd gathered for lāhainā noon   dkhedkhe / Atlas Obscura User
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About

There is always one—and only one—point on Earth that is closest in distance to the Sun. At this point, the Sun is directly overhead, and its rays land exactly perpendicular to the Earth's surface. This is called a subsolar point, and it circles the globe every day, while simultaneously following a repetitive, yearlong north-and-south cycle based on the planet's changing tilt.

This means that the subsolar point, at one time or another, hovers somewhere between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, Hawaii included. The subsolar point in Hawaii has been nicknamed the "Lahaina Noon," and since the Sun is directly overhead and the rays fall perpendicular to the ground, a strange thing happens when it comes to the shadows of objects that stand straight up: they disappear. The 'Lāhainā Noon'  term was coined in the 1990s by the Bishop Museum in Hawaii based on "lā hainā"  meaning "cruel Sun" in the Hawaiian language.

This occurs twice a year in Honolulu—on May 26 at 12:28 p.m. and July 15 at 12:37 p.m.—and world-renowned artist and landscape architect Isamu Noguchi decided to take full advantage of the astronomical phenomenon in Hawaii's largest city. His sculpture "Sky Gate" has a bendy, bumpy ring that drastically changes height as it goes around. For 363 days of the year, it will make a curvy, twisted shadow, but when the Sun is directly above it, the height-changing ring casts a perfect circle on the ground.

You can go here to track the live position of the subsolar point.

Related Tags

Sundials Parks Modernism Sculptures Astronomy

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Located in an expanse of lawn between the Honolulu Municipal Building and the Mission Memorial Auditorium near Honolulu Hale.

Community Contributors

Added By

lewblank

Edited By

quitos123, jlewcrumble0324, dkhedkhe

  • quitos123
  • jlewcrumble0324
  • dkhedkhe

Published

July 11, 2016

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Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isamu_Noguchi
  • http://archives.starbulletin.com/2001/05/23/news/story12.html
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahaina_Noon
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsolar_point
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJhgZBn-LHg
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ych9zCQstNM
  • https://onlyinhawaii.org/sky-gate-lahaina-noon-honolulu-hawaii/
  • https://rove.me/to/hawaii/lahaina-noon
Sky Gate
530 South King Street
Honolulu, Hawaii, 96813
United States
21.304576, -157.855679
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Ka Hale La’au

Honolulu, Hawaii

miles away

Iolani Palace

Honolulu, Hawaii

miles away

Ali’iolani Hale

Honolulu, Hawaii

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Honolulu

Honolulu

Hawaii

Places 17
Stories 1

Nearby Places

Ka Hale La’au

Honolulu, Hawaii

miles away

Iolani Palace

Honolulu, Hawaii

miles away

Ali’iolani Hale

Honolulu, Hawaii

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Honolulu

Honolulu

Hawaii

Places 17
Stories 1

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