A few days ago the sunset in Manhattan was perfectly aligned with the east–west streets of its main street grid:
The phenomenon happens only twice a year, in May and July. The nickname, coined by Neil DeGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist and head of the Hayden Planetarium, is a reference to England’s Stonehenge. At Stonehenge, once a year during the summer solstice, the rising Sun perfectly aligns with the 5,000-year-old stones, signaling the beginning of the season. In New York City, where the setting Sun simultaneously shines on both the north and south sides of each cross street in the grid, the phenomenon doesn’t fall on any special date.
Manhattanhenge: Neil deGrasse Tyson explains the spectacle →
Views from Manhattanhenge, New York City’s coolest sunset of the year →