This is the time of year when many folks from down south call and ask questions, or make assertions, about our weather up here and the darkness.
We are not in darkness. We are approximately 12 degrees south of the Artic Circle (60 minutes to each degree, one minute is one nautical mile, about 720 nautical miles north of Juneau). If memory serves me well, that is about the distance between Columbia, Missouri and New Orleans. Our days do get very short, however. During the winter solstice, the sun will come up around 9:15 and set before 3 PM.
What is peculiar, however, about our days in not so much the length of it, but that our light is akin to the white light we experience on the north side of a house. The sun is barely over the horizon, probably at about 20 degrees. As a result, it is hidden behind the mountains on the islands that surround Juneau. And when it is visible, the light is not all that intense.
Juneau’s citizens have a way to deal with this lack of light. We jokingly call it the “Juneau Racquetball Club.” While robust activity at the local athletic club does help, there are more natural aspects to our climate that make winter tolerable. First, what sunny days we do get (which are few), the entire panorama explodes with light reflected off of snow! What is really peculiar is Juneau in moonlight. You can actually see the mountains in the middle of the night in surprising detail.