Solarposition.org

Northland · New Zealand · 35.73° S · 174.32° E

Solar position in Whangarei

Sun position, daylight and the best solar panel angle for Whangarei — computed for 35.73° S, 174.32° E, 7 m above sea level.

Sunrise today06:27105° ESE
Sunset today19:46254° WSW
Best panel angle30°year-round, facing north
Off-grid angle60°best for the darkest month

The sun right now

Azimuth180.0°
Elevation66.3°
At solar noon, 13:06Open on the sun map

Sun in Whangarei today

Sunday, 25 October 2026 · local time UTC+13

EventTimeDirection / height
Astronomical dawn04:55sun 18° below horizon
Nautical dawn05:2912° below
Civil dawn06:006° below
Sunrise06:27105° ESE
Golden hour ends07:02sun 6° up
Solar noon13:0666.3° high
Golden hour starts19:12sun 6° up
Sunset19:46254° WSW
Civil dusk20:136° below
Nautical dusk20:4512° below
Astronomical dusk21:1818° below
Day length13 h 19 min

Sun path diagram for Whangarei

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 solstice891011121314151617EquinoxDecember solstice7891011121314151617181920Today
  • June solstice
  • Equinox
  • December solstice
  • Today

On the June solstice the sun reaches 30.9° at solar noon in Whangarei; on the December solstice only 77.7°. Sunrise swings from 61° ENE in June to 120° ESE in December — a 59° 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
January06:2813:3320:3814 h 10 min74.2°
February07:0013:3620:1113 h 10 min64.9°
March07:2613:2919:3312 h 07 min54.1°
April06:5112:2117:5010 h 59 min42.5°
May07:1512:1917:2210 h 07 min34.1°
June07:3212:2417:169 h 44 min30.9°
July07:2712:2917:3110 h 04 min33.8°
August06:5712:2617:5410 h 57 min42.1°
September06:1412:1618:1812 h 04 min53.5°
October06:3213:0719:4213 h 10 min64.9°
November06:0313:0820:1314 h 10 min74.1°
December06:0213:2020:3814 h 35 min77.7°

A year of daylight in Whangarei

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 Whangarei

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

30°collects the most energy over a year: 1469 kWh per kWp.

60°gives the most in the darkest month — the one an off-grid system is sized for.

50%60%70%80%90%100%0°10°20°30°40°50°60°70°80°90°Best year-round 30°Best worst-month 60°70°Yearly energyWorst-month energy
  • Yearly energy
  • Worst-month energy
TiltkWh/kWp per yearShare of best yearJune kWh/kWp/dayBest ÷ worst month
0°129788%1.623.4×
15°142497%2.192.5×
30° year-round best1469100%2.632.0×
36° = latitude1463100%2.761.8×
45°142997%2.911.6×
60° off-grid best130989%3.001.3×
70°118881%2.961.3×
90°87259%2.641.8×

A fixed array in Whangarei produces the most over a year at 30°. The design month for an off-grid system is June: at 60° it makes 3.00 kWh per kWp a day, 14% more than at 30°, and costs 11% of the yearly total. Why steep panels win winter.

Off-grid solar in Whangarei at 70°

Daily energy of 1 kWp by month. Bars: panels at 70°. Line: panels at 30° (year-round best).

0123456January: 3.08 (70°)3.1JanFebruary: 3.38 (70°)3.4FebMarch: 3.61 (70°)3.6MarApril: 3.50 (70°)3.5AprMay: 3.17 (70°)3.2MayJune: 2.96 (70°)3.0JunJuly: 3.07 (70°)3.1JulAugust: 3.36 (70°)3.4AugSeptember: 3.52 (70°)3.5SepOctober: 3.46 (70°)3.5OctNovember: 3.12 (70°)3.1NovDecember: 2.84 (70°)2.8Dec30°
MonthSun hours, flatSun hours at 70°kWh/kWp/day at 70°at 30°Mean temp.
January6.743.713.085.1819.9 °C
February5.824.063.384.8520.7 °C
March4.744.323.614.4119.8 °C
April3.464.163.503.6718.3 °C
May2.493.743.172.9716.5 °C
June2.053.472.962.6314.7 °C
July2.243.583.072.7913.6 °C
August2.973.913.363.3513.5 °C
September4.074.123.524.0414.1 °C
October5.264.073.464.6515.0 °C
November6.153.703.124.9216.5 °C
December6.423.412.844.8718.5 °C
Year4.36 avg3.85 avg1188 kWh1469 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 420 Wp of panels at 70°, versus 450 Wp at 30°. The steep array is 7% smaller for the same winter. Size your own system.

Row spacing in Whangarei

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.

4.3 mrow pitch at 70°

3.6 mrow pitch at 30°

Row spacing calculator

How Whangarei compares in New Zealand

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

1stof 47 places in New Zealand for sunshine: 4.36 peak sun hours a day on flat ground.

+1%solar energy a year compared with the average place in New Zealand: 1,469 against 1,455 kWh per kWp.

−6 mindaylight on the longest day, compared with Auckland: 14 h 35 min against 14 h 42 min.

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

Whangarei gets the most sun of the 47 places in New Zealand (4.36 peak sun hours a day); the least sunny is Invercargill with 3.46. In its darkest month, December, 1 kWp of off-grid panels at 70° makes 2.84 kWh a day here, against 2.77 kWh on average in New Zealand. The shortest day lasts 9 h 44 min, +6 min compared with Auckland.

The sunniest places in New Zealand

Solar forecast for Whangarei, 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 Whangarei

What is the best solar panel angle in Whangarei?
For a fixed array facing north, the best year-round tilt in Whangarei is 30°, worth about 1469 kWh per kWp a year. An off-grid system that has to get through June does better at about 60°.
What time is sunrise and sunset in Whangarei today?
On 25 October 2026 the sun rises at 06:27 and sets at 19:46 local time (UTC+13), giving 13 h 19 min of daylight. Solar noon is at 13:06.
How many peak sun hours does Whangarei get?
On a flat surface 4.4 hours a day averaged over the year, from 2.1 in June to 6.7 in January. Panels tilted at 70° receive 3.4 sun hours a day in December.
How high does the sun get in Whangarei?
At solar noon the sun stands 30.9° above the horizon on the June solstice and 77.7° on the December solstice.
Is Whangarei a good place for solar panels?
With 4.4 peak sun hours a day on flat ground, Whangarei ranks 1st of 47 places in New Zealand for sunshine. A 1 kWp array at the best angle (30°) makes about 1,469 kWh a year here, 1% more than the average place in New Zealand.

Places near Whangarei

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.