Northernmost town in U.S. sees daylight for first time in 66 days

UTQIAGVIK, Ak. – A lot of us tend to complain about the loss of daylight here during winter, but could you imagine seeing no daylight for two straight months?

That's what happens every year in Utqiagvik, Alaska (formerly known as Barrow). On Wednesday, however, they'll see the sun float along the horizon for a little over an hour. 

Between now and the first day of spring, the country's northernmost town averages 12 additional minutes of daylight per day.

Here in southwest and central Virginia, we gain roughly 2 minutes of daylight per day between now and spring.

So, why the drastic change far north?

It all has to do with the earth's 23.5° tilt relative to the sun. In the winter, the Arctic Circle is tilted away from the sun. This results in a lack of daylight. 

As we transition from winter to spring, then, they're going to gain daylight at a faster rate than we do.