Alaskan town begins 84 days of continuous daylight

Utqiagvik, the northernmost city in the United States, witnessed its last sunrise before entering nearly three months of continuous daylight.

According to the National Weather Service, the sun dipped below the horizon at 1:48am AKDT on Sunday and briefly reappeared at 2:57am, marking the beginning of the Arctic’s annual midnight sun season.

The phenomenon will keep the sun above the horizon for the next 84 days, and residents will not see another sunset until August 2.

Time-lapse footage released by the weather agency captured the rare natural event as daylight gradually took over the Arctic sky.

Every summer, Earth’s axial tilt turns the Northern Hemisphere closer toward the sun, creating extremely long daylight hours across northern Alaska and other Arctic regions.

The midnight sun remains one of the most striking seasonal phenomena in polar areas, attracting scientists, photographers and tourists from around the world.