Solarposition.org

Manawatu-Wanganui · New Zealand · 40.36° S · 175.61° E

Solar position in Palmerston North

Sun position, daylight and the best solar panel angle for Palmerston North — computed for 40.36° S, 175.61° E, 34 m above sea level.

Sunrise today06:15106° ESE
Sunset today19:48253° WSW
Best panel angle34°year-round, facing north
Off-grid angle64°best for the darkest month

The sun right now

Azimuth180.0°
Elevation61.7°
At solar noon, 13:01Open on the sun map

Sun in Palmerston North today

Sunday, 25 October 2026 · local time UTC+13

EventTimeDirection / height
Astronomical dawn04:36sun 18° below horizon
Nautical dawn05:1212° below
Civil dawn05:476° below
Sunrise06:15106° ESE
Golden hour ends06:52sun 6° up
Solar noon13:0161.7° high
Golden hour starts19:11sun 6° up
Sunset19:48253° WSW
Civil dusk20:176° below
Nautical dusk20:5112° below
Astronomical dusk21:2818° below
Day length13 h 32 min

Sun path diagram for Palmerston North

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 solstice8910111213141516EquinoxDecember solstice67891011121314151617181920Today
  • June solstice
  • Equinox
  • December solstice
  • Today

On the June solstice the sun reaches 26.2° at solar noon in Palmerston North; on the December solstice only 73.1°. Sunrise swings from 59° ENE in June to 122° ESE in December — a 63° 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
January06:1113:2820:4514 h 34 min69.6°
February06:4913:3120:1113 h 22 min60.3°
March07:2013:2419:2812 h 07 min49.5°
April06:5212:1617:3910 h 47 min37.9°
May07:2112:1317:069 h 44 min29.5°
June07:4012:1916:579 h 17 min26.2°
July07:3312:2417:149 h 42 min29.2°
August06:5812:2117:4310 h 44 min37.5°
September06:0912:1118:1212 h 03 min48.9°
October06:2113:0219:4313 h 22 min60.3°
November05:4713:0320:2014 h 33 min69.5°
December05:4313:1520:4715 h 03 min73.1°

A year of daylight in Palmerston North

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 Palmerston North

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

34°collects the most energy over a year: 1394 kWh per kWp.

64°gives the most in the darkest month — the one an off-grid system is sized for.

40%50%60%70%80%90%100%0°10°20°30°40°50°60°70°80°90°Best year-round 34°Best worst-month 64°70°Yearly energyWorst-month energy
  • Yearly energy
  • Worst-month energy
TiltkWh/kWp per yearShare of best yearJune kWh/kWp/dayBest ÷ worst month
0°119586%1.224.4×
15°133195%1.743.1×
30°1391100%2.152.4×
34° year-round best1394100%2.242.3×
40° = latitude1387100%2.352.1×
45°137298%2.431.9×
60°127591%2.551.6×
64° off-grid best123789%2.561.5×
70°117184%2.551.4×
90°88764%2.321.5×

A fixed array in Palmerston North produces the most over a year at 34°. The design month for an off-grid system is June: at 64° it makes 2.56 kWh per kWp a day, 14% more than at 34°, and costs 11% of the yearly total. Why steep panels win winter.

Off-grid solar in Palmerston North at 70°

Daily energy of 1 kWp by month. Bars: panels at 70°. Line: panels at 34° (year-round best).

0123456January: 3.34 (70°)3.3JanFebruary: 3.61 (70°)3.6FebMarch: 3.69 (70°)3.7MarApril: 3.41 (70°)3.4AprMay: 2.91 (70°)2.9MayJune: 2.55 (70°)2.5JunJuly: 2.74 (70°)2.7JulAugust: 3.11 (70°)3.1AugSeptember: 3.38 (70°)3.4SepOctober: 3.39 (70°)3.4OctNovember: 3.31 (70°)3.3NovDecember: 3.10 (70°)3.1Dec34°
MonthSun hours, flatSun hours at 70°kWh/kWp/day at 70°at 34°Mean temp.
January6.483.973.345.0917.0 °C
February5.624.293.614.8517.3 °C
March4.414.343.694.3115.7 °C
April3.053.963.413.4912.9 °C
May2.053.362.912.7010.7 °C
June1.552.922.552.248.6 °C
July1.763.132.742.477.6 °C
August2.523.553.113.068.2 °C
September3.583.893.383.759.5 °C
October4.713.933.394.3111.0 °C
November5.863.873.314.8112.8 °C
December6.213.673.104.8115.3 °C
Year3.98 avg3.74 avg1171 kWh1394 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 460 Wp of panels at 70°, versus 530 Wp at 34°. The steep array is 12% smaller for the same winter. Size your own system.

Row spacing in Palmerston North

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.

5.1 mrow pitch at 70°

4.3 mrow pitch at 34°

Row spacing calculator

How Palmerston North compares in New Zealand

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

40thof 47 places in New Zealand for sunshine: 3.98 peak sun hours a day on flat ground.

−4%solar energy a year compared with the average place in New Zealand: 1,394 against 1,455 kWh per kWp.

+22 mindaylight on the longest day, compared with Auckland: 15 h 03 min against 14 h 42 min.

34°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); Palmerston North ranks 40th. In its darkest month, June, 1 kWp of off-grid panels at 70° makes 2.55 kWh a day here, against 2.77 kWh on average in New Zealand. The shortest day lasts 9 h 17 min, −21 min compared with Auckland.

The sunniest places in New Zealand

Solar forecast for Palmerston North, 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 Palmerston North

What is the best solar panel angle in Palmerston North?
For a fixed array facing north, the best year-round tilt in Palmerston North is 34°, worth about 1394 kWh per kWp a year. An off-grid system that has to get through June does better at about 64°.
What time is sunrise and sunset in Palmerston North today?
On 25 October 2026 the sun rises at 06:15 and sets at 19:48 local time (UTC+13), giving 13 h 32 min of daylight. Solar noon is at 13:01.
How many peak sun hours does Palmerston North get?
On a flat surface 4.0 hours a day averaged over the year, from 1.5 in June to 6.5 in January. Panels tilted at 70° receive 2.9 sun hours a day in June.
How high does the sun get in Palmerston North?
At solar noon the sun stands 26.2° above the horizon on the June solstice and 73.1° on the December solstice.
Is Palmerston North a good place for solar panels?
With 4.0 peak sun hours a day on flat ground, Palmerston North ranks 40th of 47 places in New Zealand for sunshine. A 1 kWp array at the best angle (34°) makes about 1,394 kWh a year here, 4% less than the average place in New Zealand.

Places near Palmerston North

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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.