Northern Lapland bids farewell to summer’s nightless nights
In Utsjoki, the sun has been continuously above the horizon since the middle of May.
The summertime’s nightless nights are ending in Northern Lapland on Tuesday, when the sun will set for the first time in more than two months.
People in the northern village of Utsjoki have not seen the sun dip below the horizon since the middle of May.
Going forward, periods of nighttime darkness will gradually grow, but the region will continue to have relatively bright skies at night for some time to come.
The darkest day of this year will be on 21 December, coinciding with the winter solstice, when areas above the Arctic Circle will have zero visual sunrise while southern Finland will have fewer than six hours of daylight.
Then, the cycle towards a summer with long hours of sunlight will begin again.
The southern limit of nightless nights stretches from Kemi in south-western Finnish Lapland to Kuusamo in the north-east (about 100km below the Arctic Circle) though the duration is considerably shorter in these more southerly locations.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Inuvik to welcome back the sun with annual weekend festival, CBC News
Finland: A rap festival near the Arctic Ocean delights crowds under the midnight sun, The Associated Press
Sweden: Why Sweden’s missing sun is messing with our body clocks — and how morning light can help, Radio Sweden
