Setting sun aligned with Manhattan street grid

coylemj

Apologies if this has been covered before but I only came across it today by accident while reading about the partial solar eclipse that was visible in the far east a couple of days ago.

Apparently on two days of the year either side of the Summer Solstice, the setting sun is aligned perfectly with the east-west streets of Manhattan and if you stand at the eastern end of some streets where there is a clear view of the horizon over New Jersey, you can see the setting sun as a full orb shining through the urban canyon that is the streets of Manhattan and it's a spectacular sight.

In 2011 the dates are May 31st and July 11th for the full disc of the setting Sun. The phenomenon has been dubbed Manhattanhenge by an astrophysicist in the local Hayden Planetarium.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1392783/Spectacular-end-sunny-Memorial-Day-sun-sets-Manhattan.html

http://www.haydenplanetarium.org/resources/starstruck/manhattanhenge

Cú Giobach

I can imagine archaeologists far in the future coming up with all sorts of fantastical ideas about this, with future hippies gathering every year for dancing and chanting.