2023 Peak Bloom
The NPS judged that the Yoshino cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin reached peak bloom on March 23, 2023. They're now done for the year..
If you’re looking to take advantage of the beautiful light shortly after sunrise or the warm glow just before sunset, or maybe you just want to use the sun in your photo, here are the sunrise and sunset times at the Tidal Basin for the upcoming four weeks.
The times below are all the official, technical times. But in practice, there’s some padding to take into account. They assume a perfectly clear view of a flat horizon. But even though DC doesn’t have traditional skyscrapers, there are still buildings on the horizon. And the Tidal Basin lies at a low point. So the times you actually get a visual on sunrise and sunset deviate a bit from the astronomical times.
In the case of sunrise at the Tidal Basin, we have to wait for the sun to get over some buildings. Depending on where you are along the Tidal Basin waterfront and the precise direction of the sunrise that morning, some of the buildings to contend with are the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, or the Jefferson Memorial. What that means in practice is that you can safely add at least 10-12 minutes to the times below before you’re likely to see the edges of the sun itself.
With sunset, you have the reverse as the sun disappears behind the buildings of Rosslyn and the hills of Arlington. So you should subtract about the same amount of time from the sunset times.
The same thing affects the angle of the sun. In that extra 10-15 minutes or so, the sun will move a few degrees. If you want a very accurate calculator that takes that into account, check out the Helios Sun Position Calculator app.
Predawn is also a very good time to get reflections off the Tidal Basin itself. It’s likely to be the stillest part of the day (and probably the coolest).
Sunrise & Sunset Times at the Tidal Basin
Sunrise & Sunset in Tidal Basin, Washington DC
| Date | Event | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Today | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:11 16:48 |
| Tomorrow | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:12 16:48 |
| December 8 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:13 16:48 |
| December 9 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:13 16:48 |
| December 10 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:14 16:48 |
| December 11 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:15 16:48 |
| December 12 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:16 16:48 |
| December 13 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:16 16:48 |
| December 14 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:17 16:48 |
| December 15 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:18 16:49 |
| December 16 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:19 16:49 |
| December 17 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:19 16:49 |
| December 18 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:20 16:50 |
| December 19 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:20 16:50 |
| December 20 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:21 16:50 |
| December 21 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:21 16:51 |
| December 22 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:22 16:51 |
| December 23 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:22 16:52 |
| December 24 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:23 16:53 |
| December 25 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:23 16:53 |
| December 26 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:24 16:54 |
| December 27 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:24 16:54 |
| December 28 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:24 16:55 |
| December 29 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:25 16:56 |
| December 30 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:25 16:57 |
| December 31 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:25 16:57 |
| January 1 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:25 16:58 |
| January 2 | Sunrise: Sunset: | 07:25 16:59 |
Smartphone Apps
There are some very handy smartphone apps that will tell you–and often show you–where the sun will be at any given time at any location. Some even have a heads-up display that uses your phone’s camera so you can see it exactly from the spot you’re standing at. I have a roundup of these apps for tracking the sun and moon here.
