Calculate the sun's elevation and azimuth for any location, date, and time — for solar panels, shadow analysis, and golden-hour photography.
You might also find these calculators useful
Calculate sunrise and sunset times for any location
See daylight hours and how the day lengthens or shortens
Estimate safe sun exposure time from UV index and skin type
Calculate solar system size, cost, and savings for your home
The Solar Position Calculator finds where the sun sits in the sky at a single moment — its elevation above the horizon and its compass azimuth. That is the number you need to aim a solar panel, predict a shadow, catch golden-hour light, or point a satellite dish. Pick an example scenario or enter your own latitude, longitude, date, local time, and UTC offset.
Solar position is the sun's place in the sky described by two angles. Elevation (altitude) is how high the sun is above the horizon, from 0° at the horizon to 90° straight overhead. Azimuth is the sun's compass direction, measured clockwise from true north: 90° is east, 180° is due south, 270° is west. Both change minute by minute as Earth rotates, and their daily arc shifts through the year with the 23.4° axial tilt. Unlike a sunrise or day-length tool, which answer when the sun crosses the horizon, this tool answers where the sun is at the exact time you choose.
Solar Elevation Formula
Match panel tilt and orientation to the sun's altitude and azimuth across the day and year.
Study sun angles to place windows, awnings, and shading and to check overshadowing.
Predict the sun's direction and height for golden hour, backlighting, and long shadows.
Derive hour angles for sundials and know where the sun sits for observing and alignment.
Set panel tilt and azimuth to the sun's angle for the season and time of day you care about most.
Predict how long a shadow is and which way it falls to plan shading, glare, and overshadowing.
Find golden hour and the exact direction of light before you set up a shot or a scene.
Use the sun's known azimuth and elevation as a reference to point dishes and align mounts.
Elevation (altitude) is how high the sun is above the horizon, from 0° at the horizon to 90° overhead. Azimuth is its compass direction, measured clockwise from true north — 90° east, 180° south, 270° west. Together they pin the sun's exact spot in the sky.
Those tools tell you when the sun crosses the horizon and how long the day lasts. This tool tells you where the sun is — its elevation and azimuth — at the specific time you enter. Use it for panel aiming, shadows, and photography rather than event times.
Point the panel at the sun's azimuth and tilt it up to the sun's elevation for the time you most want to capture — often solar noon, when the sun is highest and due south (northern hemisphere) or due north (southern hemisphere). Check several dates to balance summer and winter.
The sun is due south (or north) at solar noon, not clock noon. Your time zone, daylight saving, longitude within the zone, and the equation of time all shift solar noon away from 12:00, so at 12:00 the azimuth is usually a little east or west of 180°.
It uses the NOAA solar-position equations and is accurate to about a degree. The elevation is the true geometric angle without a refraction correction; refraction lifts the apparent sun by roughly half a degree only when it is within a couple of degrees of the horizon.