Thousands of people flocked to the cross streets of Manhattan this week to capture the stunning sunset which has been dubbed ‘Manhattanhenge’.
Twice a year, the setting sun aligns precisely with the east-west streets of Manhattan’s street grid system creating a glow of light throughout the concrete jungle and creating a ball of light between buildings.
The name Manhattanhedge, popularised by astrophysicist Dr Neil deGrasse Tyson as it is a similar occurrence to Stonehenge in the United Kingdom where the sun on the summer solstice, sets in alignment with the stones.
But while Stonehenge was built along a true east-west axis, Manhattan’s street grid is imperfectly aligned with the directions of the compass so Manhattanhenge occurs when the sun sets 30 degrees off from true west.
While I missed the official Manhattanhenge which took place on Monday (New York time), I did capture a slice of its beauty during my stay:
It also happened to correspond with my Travelshoot and my photographer Luc captured the moment I was bathed in its golden glow.



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