NEW YORK CITY — Manhattanhenge occurred in New York City on May 28, 2026, with a half sun visible at 8:14 p.m. ET. The phenomenon will feature a full sun alignment on May 29 at 8:13 p.m. ET.

Manhattanhenge is a biannual phenomenon that happens when the setting sun aligns with the Manhattan street grid, appearing framed by the city’s skyscrapers. It occurs about three weeks before and after the summer solstice, which in 2026 falls on June 21. The event will recur later in the year, with a full sun visible on July 11 at 8:20 p.m. ET and a half sun on July 12 at 8:21 p.m. ET.

During the May 28 and July 12 alignments, half the sun sits above the horizon and half below it at the moment of alignment with Manhattan’s east-west streets. On May 29 and July 11, the entire sun appears to hover between buildings before sinking below the horizon across the Hudson River toward New Jersey.

Traditional viewing locations include 14th, 23rd, 34th, 42nd, and 57th Streets in Manhattan. Additional vantage points are the Tudor City Overpass on East 42nd Street and Hunter’s Point South Park in Long Island City, Queens. The best views are typically found farther east on east-west streets, where sunlight illuminates building facades on both sides.

Manhattanhenge is not an organized event and is primarily a do-it-yourself experience. Observers usually arrive about 30 minutes before sunset to secure a spot. The spectacle lasts only a few minutes and is not visible on cloudy or rainy days.

The term “Manhattanhenge” was coined by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson in a 1997 article in the magazine Natural History. Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History, developed the name after visiting Stonehenge as a teenager on an expedition led by Gerald Hawkins, who theorized the ancient site functioned as an astronomical observatory.

The alignment is a byproduct of Manhattan’s street grid, which is rotated approximately 30 degrees east from geographic north. The planners who designed the grid in the early 19th century did not intend for it to align with the sun. Similar phenomena occur in other cities with uniform street layouts, including Chicagohenge and Baltimorehenge around the equinoxes in March and September, and Torontohenge in February and October.