Solarposition.org

Connecticut · United States · 41.76° N · 72.74° W

Solar position in West Hartford

Sun position, daylight and the best solar panel angle for West Hartford — computed for 41.76° N, 72.74° W, 40 m above sea level.

Sunrise today07:13105° ESE
Sunset today17:55255° WSW
Best panel angle36°year-round, facing south
Off-grid angle67°best for the darkest month

The sun right now

Azimuth180.0°
Elevation36.3°
At solar noon, 12:34Open on the sun map

Sun in West Hartford today

Saturday, 24 October 2026 · local time UTC−4

EventTimeDirection / height
Astronomical dawn05:40sun 18° below horizon
Nautical dawn06:1212° below
Civil dawn06:456° below
Sunrise07:13105° ESE
Golden hour ends07:52sun 6° up
Solar noon12:3436.3° high
Golden hour starts17:17sun 6° up
Sunset17:55255° WSW
Civil dusk18:246° below
Nautical dusk18:5612° below
Astronomical dusk19:2918° below
Day length10 h 42 min

Sun path diagram for West Hartford

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 71.7° at solar noon in West Hartford; on the December solstice only 24.8°. Sunrise swings from 57° ENE in June to 121° ESE in December — a 64° 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
January07:1212:0216:529 h 40 min28.5°
February06:3712:0417:3110 h 54 min37.9°
March06:5212:5819:0412 h 12 min48.7°
April06:0112:4919:3813 h 37 min60.3°
May05:2512:4720:1014 h 44 min68.5°
June05:1612:5220:2915 h 13 min71.7°
July05:3412:5720:1914 h 45 min68.6°
August06:0512:5319:4113 h 36 min60.2°
September06:3712:4318:4912 h 12 min48.8°
October07:1012:3518:0010 h 50 min37.4°
November06:4711:3616:259 h 38 min28.3°
December07:1411:4916:239 h 08 min24.8°

A year of daylight in West Hartford

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 West Hartford

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

36°collects the most energy over a year: 1384 kWh per kWp.

67°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 36°Best worst-month 67°70°Yearly energyWorst-month energy
  • Yearly energy
  • Worst-month energy
TiltkWh/kWp per yearShare of best yearDecember kWh/kWp/dayBest ÷ worst month
0°116284%1.214.0×
15°130694%1.722.9×
30°1378100%2.152.2×
36° year-round best1384100%2.282.0×
42° = latitude1378100%2.391.8×
45°137199%2.441.8×
60°128793%2.601.5×
67° off-grid best122488%2.611.5×
70°119286%2.611.5×
90°92367%2.442.0×

A fixed array in West Hartford produces the most over a year at 36°. The design month for an off-grid system is December: at 67° it makes 2.61 kWh per kWp a day, 15% more than at 36°, and costs 12% of the yearly total. Why steep panels win winter.

Off-grid solar in West Hartford at 70°

Daily energy of 1 kWp by month. Bars: panels at 70°. Line: panels at 36° (year-round best).

012345January: 3.20 (70°)3.2JanFebruary: 3.83 (70°)3.8FebMarch: 3.69 (70°)3.7MarApril: 3.51 (70°)3.5AprMay: 3.06 (70°)3.1MayJune: 2.90 (70°)2.9JunJuly: 3.07 (70°)3.1JulAugust: 3.31 (70°)3.3AugSeptember: 3.68 (70°)3.7SepOctober: 3.27 (70°)3.3OctNovember: 3.12 (70°)3.1NovDecember: 2.61 (70°)2.6Dec36°
MonthSun hours, flatSun hours at 70°kWh/kWp/day at 70°at 36°Mean temp.
January snow1.833.493.202.77-3.6 °C
February snow2.674.203.833.55-2.6 °C
March3.704.123.694.081.5 °C
April4.814.023.514.477.8 °C
May5.423.603.064.4014.0 °C
June5.873.492.904.4419.1 °C
July6.013.733.074.5822.8 °C
August5.314.013.314.4522.3 °C
September4.344.383.684.2718.5 °C
October2.863.783.273.3511.7 °C
November2.023.523.122.885.4 °C
December snow1.492.902.612.280.0 °C
Year3.86 avg3.77 avg1192 kWh1384 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 450 Wp of panels at 70°, versus 520 Wp at 36°. The steep array is 13% smaller for the same winter. Size your own system.

Row spacing in West Hartford

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.

5.4 mrow pitch at 70°

4.6 mrow pitch at 36°

Row spacing calculator

How West Hartford 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.

2375thof 3,121 places in the United States for sunshine, shared: 3.87 peak sun hours a day on flat ground.

−9%solar energy a year compared with the average place in the United States: 1,384 against 1,515 kWh per kWp.

+7 mindaylight on the longest day, compared with New York City: 15 h 13 min against 15 h 06 min.

36°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); West Hartford ranks joint 2375th. In its darkest month, December, 1 kWp of off-grid panels at 70° makes 2.61 kWh a day here, against 2.55 kWh on average in the United States. The shortest day lasts 9 h 08 min, −7 min compared with New York City.

The sunniest places in the United States

Solar forecast for West Hartford, 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 West Hartford

What is the best solar panel angle in West Hartford?
For a fixed array facing south, the best year-round tilt in West Hartford is 36°, worth about 1384 kWh per kWp a year. An off-grid system that has to get through December does better at about 67°.
What time is sunrise and sunset in West Hartford today?
On 24 October 2026 the sun rises at 07:13 and sets at 17:55 local time (UTC−4), giving 10 h 42 min of daylight. Solar noon is at 12:34.
How many peak sun hours does West Hartford get?
On a flat surface 3.9 hours a day averaged over the year, from 1.5 in December to 6.0 in July. Panels tilted at 70° receive 2.9 sun hours a day in December.
How high does the sun get in West Hartford?
At solar noon the sun stands 71.7° above the horizon on the June solstice and 24.8° on the December solstice.
Is West Hartford a good place for solar panels?
With 3.9 peak sun hours a day on flat ground, West Hartford ranks joint 2375th of 3,121 places in the United States for sunshine. A 1 kWp array at the best angle (36°) makes about 1,384 kWh a year here, 9% less than the average place in the United States.

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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.