Sunrise Score
How good will the sunrise be?
A score out of 100.
Meridian’s Sunrise Score reads the forecast cloud at the minute the sun rises: high cloud to catch the color, low cloud in the way, rain and fog. Every city’s sunrise and sunset page has the next one, and a week of them. For the evening, there’s the Sunset Score.
The next eight hours of sunrises
Every major city with a sunrise in the next eight hours, colored by its Sunrise Score. Tap one for its week.
Colorful sunrise 87Clear sunrise 203Mixed sunrise 42Cloudy sunrise 99
Where the sunrise looks good next
The best Sunrise Scores of the next eight hours, from each city’s forecast, on each city’s own clock.
- Naga95 colorful sunrise, 5:41 am · in 19 min
- Ulsan95 colorful sunrise, 6:45 am · in 23 min
- Bandar Seri Begawan95 colorful sunrise, 6:05 am · in 43 min
- Changchun95 colorful sunrise, 6:15 am · in 53 min
- Fushun95 colorful sunrise, 6:17 am · in 55 min
- Shantou95 colorful sunrise, 6:19 am · in 57 min
- Shenyang95 colorful sunrise, 6:19 am · in 57 min
- Kuching95 colorful sunrise, 6:20 am · in 58 min
- Yingkou95 colorful sunrise, 6:21 am · in 59 min
- Bandung95 colorful sunrise, 5:22 am · in 1 h
- Jinzhou95 colorful sunrise, 6:27 am · in 1 h 5 min
- Tongliao95 colorful sunrise, 6:27 am · in 1 h 5 min
The best sunrises by country
United StatesCanadaMexicoColombiaVenezuelaPeruBrazilArgentinaChileUnited KingdomFranceSpainGermanyItalyPolandUkraineRussiaTurkeySyriaIraqIranSaudi ArabiaPakistanIndiaBangladeshVietnamMalaysiaIndonesiaPhilippinesChinaTaiwanSouth KoreaJapanUzbekistanEgyptAlgeriaMoroccoTanzaniaNigeriaDR CongoSouth AfricaAustralia
What the numbers mean
- 70Colorful sunrise 70 to 100
Cloud high in the sky to catch the color, and a clear eastern horizon for the first light to reach it. The sky can glow orange, pink and red before the sun is up.
- 55Clear sunrise 55 to 69
A clear sky: golden first light right across the horizon, but few clouds for the color to light up beforehand.
- 35Mixed sunrise 35 to 54
Some low cloud in the way, or a thick layer above. Color is possible if the light gets through.
- 0Cloudy sunrise 0 to 34
Thick low cloud, rain, snow or fog between you and the sun. The sunrise is likely hidden.
How it’s worked out
A clear sky scores 55: the sun comes up in golden light, but there’s little for the color to land on beforehand. Cloud high in the sky is what turns a sunrise pink and red, because it catches the light while the sun is still below your horizon; broken cloud covering half to most of the sky lifts the score to 95, and a solid layer brings it back down, since the light can’t get through.
Low cloud does the opposite: it sits between you and the horizon and blocks the first light, taking up to 70% of the score away. Rain, snow, storms, fog and low overcast put the score under 20.
The score is for the forecast at one point, the city, at the minute the sun rises. The sky to the east matters most, and it can be clearer or cloudier than overhead, so take it as a guide. The forecast is MET Norway’s, read again as it updates. The golden hour just after sunrise is when the light is warmest.
Questions
What is the Sunrise Score?
A number from 0 to 100 for how good a sunrise is likely to look where you are, from the weather forecast at the minute the sun rises: 70 and up is a colorful sunrise likely, 55 a clear one, 35 some color possible, and below that the sunrise is likely hidden. The Sunset Score is the same for sunset.
Is it worth getting up for?
At 70 and up the forecast has what lights up a sky before dawn: broken cloud high up and a clear horizon to the east. Below 35, cloud or rain is likely in the way. Check again the evening before, since the forecast moves.
How far ahead does it go?
About a week. Each city’s sunrise and sunset page shows the Sunrise and Sunset Score for every day the forecast reaches, and the nearer days are the most reliable.
Where does the forecast come from?
From MET Norway’s weather forecast for the city, read again as it updates through the day.
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