Lahaina Noon – when the sun is directly overhead and makes things look like a bad videogame

When the sun is directly overhead in Hawaii, it looks like a bad video game render

The sun is exactly overhead twice a year in Lahaina, Hawaii, once in May and once in July. Poles don’t cast shadows, giving the urban landscape an eerie appearance. Hawaii is the only state in the US where the sun’s rays are perpendicular to the surface of Earth. It’s called a subsolar point.

Image: Flickr/Daniel Ramirez

Caelus5 – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link

Here’s Isamu Noguchi’s “Skygate” sculpture in Hawaii that makes a perfect ring during the Lahaina Noon:

This is Skygate

More photos here and here.

Here’s a real-time map showing the current subsolar sublunar points.