Solarposition.org

New York · United States · 40.86° N · 73.20° W

Solar position in Smithtown

Sun position, daylight and the best solar panel angle for Smithtown — computed for 40.86° N, 73.20° W, 18 m above sea level.

Sunrise today07:14105° ESE
Sunset today17:59255° WSW
Best panel angle34°year-round, facing south
Off-grid angle63°best for the darkest month

The sun right now

Azimuth180.0°
Elevation37.2°
At solar noon, 12:36Open on the sun map

Sun in Smithtown today

Saturday, 24 October 2026 · local time UTC−4

EventTimeDirection / height
Astronomical dawn05:42sun 18° below horizon
Nautical dawn06:1412° below
Civil dawn06:466° below
Sunrise07:14105° ESE
Golden hour ends07:52sun 6° up
Solar noon12:3637.2° high
Golden hour starts17:21sun 6° up
Sunset17:59255° WSW
Civil dusk18:276° below
Nautical dusk18:5912° below
Astronomical dusk19:3018° below
Day length10 h 45 min

Sun path diagram for Smithtown

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 solstice67891011121314151617181920EquinoxDecember solstice8910111213141516Today
  • June solstice
  • Equinox
  • December solstice
  • Today

On the June solstice the sun reaches 72.6° at solar noon in Smithtown; on the December solstice only 25.7°. Sunrise swings from 57° ENE in June to 121° 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
January07:1112:0416:569 h 45 min29.4°
February06:3812:0617:3410 h 56 min38.8°
March06:5413:0019:0612 h 12 min49.6°
April06:0412:5119:3813 h 34 min61.2°
May05:3012:4920:0914 h 39 min69.4°
June05:2112:5420:2815 h 07 min72.6°
July05:3912:5920:1814 h 40 min69.5°
August06:0812:5519:4213 h 33 min61.1°
September06:3912:4518:5112 h 12 min49.7°
October07:1012:3718:0310 h 53 min38.3°
November06:4711:3816:309 h 43 min29.2°
December07:1311:5016:289 h 14 min25.7°

A year of daylight in Smithtown

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 Smithtown

Fixed array facing south (azimuth 180°). Energy per kWp from NASA POWER monthly climate, including clouds, temperature and snow reflection.

34°collects the most energy over a year: 1393 kWh per kWp.

63°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 63°70°Yearly energyWorst-month energy
  • Yearly energy
  • Worst-month energy
TiltkWh/kWp per yearShare of best yearDecember kWh/kWp/dayBest ÷ worst month
0°118685%1.244.0×
15°132795%1.742.9×
30°1390100%2.122.2×
34° year-round best1393100%2.212.1×
41° = latitude138599%2.331.9×
45°137399%2.381.9×
60°127792%2.491.6×
63° off-grid best124990%2.501.6×
70°117384%2.481.5×
90°88864%2.261.7×

A fixed array in Smithtown produces the most over a year at 34°. The design month for an off-grid system is December: at 63° it makes 2.50 kWh per kWp a day, 13% more than at 34°, and costs 10% of the yearly total. Why steep panels win winter.

Off-grid solar in Smithtown at 70°

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

012345January: 2.98 (70°)3.0JanFebruary: 3.48 (70°)3.5FebMarch: 3.73 (70°)3.7MarApril: 3.54 (70°)3.5AprMay: 3.07 (70°)3.1MayJune: 2.92 (70°)2.9JunJuly: 3.05 (70°)3.0JulAugust: 3.30 (70°)3.3AugSeptember: 3.65 (70°)3.6SepOctober: 3.33 (70°)3.3OctNovember: 3.08 (70°)3.1NovDecember: 2.48 (70°)2.5Dec34°
MonthSun hours, flatSun hours at 70°kWh/kWp/day at 70°at 34°Mean temp.
January snow1.853.312.982.640.3 °C
February2.733.863.483.430.7 °C
March3.804.183.734.133.5 °C
April4.944.063.544.578.5 °C
May5.543.613.074.5213.8 °C
June6.053.512.924.6019.2 °C
July6.123.723.054.6823.2 °C
August5.414.023.304.5223.2 °C
September4.404.373.654.2719.9 °C
October2.983.893.333.4114.2 °C
November2.103.533.082.848.6 °C
December1.552.792.482.213.8 °C
Year3.96 avg3.74 avg1173 kWh1393 kWh

Sizing example. To run a 1 kWh-per-day load through December on LiFePO4 batteries (charge controller, battery and inverter losses included) you need about 480 Wp of panels at 70°, versus 530 Wp at 34°. The steep array is 11% smaller for the same winter. Size your own system.

Row spacing in Smithtown

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.

5.2 mrow pitch at 70°

4.4 mrow pitch at 34°

Row spacing calculator

How Smithtown compares in the United States

Against the other 3,120 places in the United States with climate data, for a fixed array at its best angle.

2024thof 3,121 places in the United States for sunshine, shared: 3.96 peak sun hours a day on flat ground.

−8%solar energy a year compared with the average place in the United States: 1,393 against 1,515 kWh per kWp.

+1 mindaylight on the longest day, compared with New York City: 15 h 07 min against 15 h 06 min.

34°best year-round tilt here; across the United States it runs from 18° in Honolulu to 53° in Fairbanks.

Of the 3,121 places in the United States, Fortuna Foothills and 2 other places get the most sun (5.96 peak sun hours a day) and Juneau the least (2.38); Smithtown ranks joint 2024th. In its darkest month, December, 1 kWp of off-grid panels at 70° makes 2.48 kWh a day here, against 2.55 kWh on average in the United States. The shortest day lasts 9 h 14 min, −1 min compared with New York City.

The sunniest places in the United States

Solar forecast for Smithtown, 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 Smithtown

What is the best solar panel angle in Smithtown?
For a fixed array facing south, the best year-round tilt in Smithtown is 34°, worth about 1393 kWh per kWp a year. An off-grid system that has to get through December does better at about 63°.
What time is sunrise and sunset in Smithtown today?
On 24 October 2026 the sun rises at 07:14 and sets at 17:59 local time (UTC−4), giving 10 h 45 min of daylight. Solar noon is at 12:36.
How many peak sun hours does Smithtown get?
On a flat surface 4.0 hours a day averaged over the year, from 1.5 in December to 6.1 in July. Panels tilted at 70° receive 2.8 sun hours a day in December.
How high does the sun get in Smithtown?
At solar noon the sun stands 72.6° above the horizon on the June solstice and 25.7° on the December solstice.
Is Smithtown a good place for solar panels?
With 4.0 peak sun hours a day on flat ground, Smithtown ranks joint 2024th of 3,121 places in the United States for sunshine. A 1 kWp array at the best angle (34°) makes about 1,393 kWh a year here, 8% less than the average place in the United States.

Places near Smithtown

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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.