Solarposition.org

Otago · New Zealand · 45.87° S · 170.50° E

Solar position in Dunedin

Sun position, daylight and the best solar panel angle for Dunedin — computed for 45.87° S, 170.50° E, 21 m above sea level.

Sunrise today06:26108° ESE
Sunset today20:18252° WSW
Best panel angle39°year-round, facing north
Off-grid angle69°best for the darkest month

The sun right now

Azimuth180.0°
Elevation56.2°
At solar noon, 13:22Open on the sun map

Sun in Dunedin today

Sunday, 25 October 2026 · local time UTC+13

EventTimeDirection / height
Astronomical dawn04:33sun 18° below horizon
Nautical dawn05:1612° below
Civil dawn05:556° below
Sunrise06:26108° ESE
Golden hour ends07:07sun 6° up
Solar noon13:2256.2° high
Golden hour starts19:37sun 6° up
Sunset20:18252° WSW
Civil dusk20:506° below
Nautical dusk21:2912° below
Astronomical dusk22:1218° below
Day length13 h 52 min

Sun path diagram for Dunedin

Where the sun stands in the sky: the centre is straight overhead, the outer ring is the horizon. Numbers mark local clock hours.

15°30°45°60°75°N30°60°E120°150°S210°240°W300°330°June solstice910111213141516EquinoxDecember solstice6789101112131415161718192021Today
  • June solstice
  • Equinox
  • December solstice
  • Today

On the June solstice the sun reaches 20.7° at solar noon in Dunedin; on the December solstice only 67.6°. Sunrise swings from 56° NE in June to 126° SE in December — a 70° arc along the horizon.

Sunrise, sunset and sun height by month

Values for the 21st of each month, local clock time including daylight saving time.

MonthSunriseSolar noonSunsetDay lengthNoon elevation
January06:1513:4921:2215 h 07 min64.1°
February07:0113:5120:4013 h 39 min54.8°
March07:4013:4519:4812 h 08 min44.0°
April07:2112:3617:5110 h 30 min32.4°
May07:5712:3417:109 h 13 min24.0°
June08:2012:3916:598 h 39 min20.7°
July08:0912:4417:199 h 10 min23.7°
August07:2812:4117:5510 h 27 min32.0°
September06:3012:3118:3312 h 03 min43.4°
October06:3313:2220:1213 h 39 min54.8°
November05:5113:2320:5715 h 06 min64.0°
December05:4313:3521:2815 h 44 min67.6°

A year of daylight in Dunedin

Each column is one day of 2026. Bright: sun above the horizon; soft: civil twilight; line: solar noon. Steps are daylight saving time changes.

00:0003:0006:0009:0012:0015:0018:0021:0000:00JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Best solar panel angle in Dunedin

Fixed array facing north (azimuth 0°). Energy per kWp from NASA POWER monthly climate, including clouds, temperature and snow reflection.

39°collects the most energy over a year: 1319 kWh per kWp.

69°gives the most in the darkest month — the one an off-grid system is sized for.

30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%0°10°20°30°40°50°60°70°80°90°Best year-round 39°Best worst-month 69°70°Yearly energyWorst-month energy
  • Yearly energy
  • Worst-month energy
TiltkWh/kWp per yearShare of best yearJune kWh/kWp/dayBest ÷ worst month
0°107782%0.875.8×
15°122793%1.363.8×
30°130799%1.772.8×
39° year-round best1319100%1.972.4×
45°131299%2.072.2×
46° = latitude131099%2.082.2×
60°124394%2.231.8×
69° off-grid best116788%2.261.7×
70°115788%2.261.7×
90°90769%2.121.4×

A fixed array in Dunedin produces the most over a year at 39°. The design month for an off-grid system is June: at 69° it makes 2.26 kWh per kWp a day, 15% more than at 39°, and costs 12% of the yearly total. Why steep panels win winter.

Off-grid solar in Dunedin at 70°

Daily energy of 1 kWp by month. Bars: panels at 70°. Line: panels at 39° (year-round best).

0123456January: 3.38 (70°)3.4JanFebruary: 3.67 (70°)3.7FebMarch: 3.54 (70°)3.5MarApril: 3.08 (70°)3.1AprMay: 2.50 (70°)2.5MayJune: 2.26 (70°)2.3JunJuly: 2.54 (70°)2.5JulAugust: 2.97 (70°)3.0AugSeptember: 3.49 (70°)3.5SepOctober: 3.73 (70°)3.7OctNovember: 3.55 (70°)3.5NovDecember: 3.36 (70°)3.4Dec39°
MonthSun hours, flatSun hours at 70°kWh/kWp/day at 70°at 39°Mean temp.
January5.813.973.384.6913.6 °C
February5.114.293.674.6113.5 °C
March3.814.123.543.9712.3 °C
April2.463.543.083.0810.1 °C
May1.502.862.502.287.9 °C
June1.132.572.261.975.9 °C
July1.342.882.542.255.3 °C
August2.073.372.972.856.1 °C
September3.283.983.493.727.5 °C
October4.644.283.734.488.7 °C
November5.664.113.554.7710.4 °C
December6.063.933.364.7812.4 °C
Year3.57 avg3.65 avg1157 kWh1319 kWh

Sizing example. To run a 1 kWh-per-day load through June on LiFePO4 batteries (charge controller, battery and inverter losses included) you need about 520 Wp of panels at 70°, versus 600 Wp at 39°. The steep array is 13% smaller for the same winter. Size your own system.

Row spacing in Dunedin

Distance between rows of 2 m long panels (slope length) so that no row shades the next between 10:00 and 14:00 solar time on the winter solstice.

6.6 mrow pitch at 70°

5.5 mrow pitch at 39°

Row spacing calculator

How Dunedin compares in New Zealand

Against the other 46 places in New Zealand with climate data, for a fixed array at its best angle.

46thof 47 places in New Zealand for sunshine: 3.57 peak sun hours a day on flat ground.

−9%solar energy a year compared with the average place in New Zealand: 1,320 against 1,455 kWh per kWp.

+1 h 03 mindaylight on the longest day, compared with Auckland: 15 h 44 min against 14 h 42 min.

39°best year-round tilt here; across New Zealand it runs from 30° in Whangarei to 39° in Dunedin.

Of the 47 places in New Zealand, Whangarei gets the most sun (4.36 peak sun hours a day) and Invercargill the least (3.46); Dunedin ranks 46th. In its darkest month, June, 1 kWp of off-grid panels at 70° makes 2.26 kWh a day here, against 2.77 kWh on average in New Zealand. The shortest day lasts 8 h 39 min, −59 min compared with Auckland.

The sunniest places in New Zealand

Solar forecast for Dunedin, next 48 hours

Expected output of 1 kWp at 70°, computed from the ICON-EU weather model of the Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD), Europe.

Loading the latest forecast…

Questions about the sun in Dunedin

What is the best solar panel angle in Dunedin?
For a fixed array facing north, the best year-round tilt in Dunedin is 39°, worth about 1319 kWh per kWp a year. An off-grid system that has to get through June does better at about 69°.
What time is sunrise and sunset in Dunedin today?
On 25 October 2026 the sun rises at 06:26 and sets at 20:18 local time (UTC+13), giving 13 h 52 min of daylight. Solar noon is at 13:22.
How many peak sun hours does Dunedin get?
On a flat surface 3.6 hours a day averaged over the year, from 1.1 in June to 6.1 in December. Panels tilted at 70° receive 2.6 sun hours a day in June.
How high does the sun get in Dunedin?
At solar noon the sun stands 20.7° above the horizon on the June solstice and 67.6° on the December solstice.
Is Dunedin a good place for solar panels?
With 3.6 peak sun hours a day on flat ground, Dunedin ranks 46th of 47 places in New Zealand for sunshine. A 1 kWp array at the best angle (39°) makes about 1,320 kWh a year here, 9% less than the average place in New Zealand.

Places near Dunedin

All places in New Zealand

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Sun positions: NREL Solar Position Algorithm. Climate: NASA POWER monthly climatology (NASA Langley Research Center). Forecast: Deutscher Wetterdienst, ICON-EU (CC BY 4.0), processed. Places: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Time zones: IANA. Sources and licences.