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Manhattanhenge happening Memorial Day

Ashley May
USA TODAY
Clearing skies allowed the sun to come through with a dramatic sunset during a past Manhattanhenge.

Like your cousin with the tiny house, the sun’s location is always changing.

That’s why four times a year, New Yorkers and anyone with an artsy Instagram page freak out about Manhattanhenge, when the sun lines up exactly with Manhattan’s street grid and the city is enveloped in a radiant glow.

The phenomenon occurs "when the setting sun aligns precisely with the Manhattan street grid, creating a radiant glow of light across Manhattan's brick and steel canyons, simultaneously illuminating both the north and south sides of every cross street of the borough's grid," writes Neil deGrasse Tyson, head of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City.

You can see a half sunset at 8:12 p.m. May 29 and a full sunset at 8:12 p.m. Memorial Day. Can’t make it this weekend? Manhattanhenge happens again July 11 and 12, when the American Museum of Natural History will host a session on the phenomenon’s history. Tickets are $15. Get details here.

Want to soak up the rays? Go as far east as possible in Manhattan. The The Empire State building and the Chrysler building areas provide great views.

New York isn't the only city that celebrates this event, there's ChicagohengeBostonhengePhillyhengeTorontothenge and Montrealhenge.

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