Special Feature—City of Stars

McGraw-Hill Building Plaza

SUN TRIANGLE McGraw-Hill Building Plaza Avenue of the Americas between 48th and 49th Streets Manhattan

People eat, sleep, talk, and walk in this plaza, unaware of the triangle’s Stonehengian significance. For many visitors, the Sun Triangle, by oceanographer, inventor, and sculptor Athelstan Spilhaus, is just another oversize, odd-looking modern sculpture parked in front of a modern building. The image below was taken at 1:00 p.m. (which would have been noon if it weren’t for daylight time) on June 21, the summer solstice. On this day, at this time, the Sun reaches an altitude of 73° in the sky and its rays align exactly with the short, steep side of the triangle.

In winter the Sun’s path across the sky stays low. Its rays align exactly with the lower side of the triangle at noon on the winter solstice (December 21), when the Sun ascends no higher than 26° in the sky. At noon on the spring and autumn equinoxes (March 21 and September 21), the Sun’s elevation is intermediate, aligning exactly with the third (upper) leg of the triangle. No side of the triangle is vertical—for good reason. At no time of day and on no day of the year is the Sun directly overhead in New York City. Indeed, the Sun is never directly overhead anywhere in the continental United States. Yet if you ask people in the street, “Where is the Sun at 12:00 noon?” more than half will point straight up. If you catch people in this display of ignorance, please point them to this triangle.

SUN TRIANGLE Seen from below on June 21

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