Renowned Chicago photographer Barry Butler is preparing for one of his favorite days of the year.
“I was shooting Chicagohenge before it was actually called Chicagohenge,” he said.
Butler will likely be one of the many flocking to east-to-west streets downtown just before sunrise or sunset Sunday to watch the skyscrapers frame the sun and funnel its warm orange glow straight through the downtown streets.
Chicagohenge is a collaboration between nature and the city grid that happens twice a year.
During the fall and spring equinoxes, the sun rises directly to the east and sets directly to the west. The buildings on the east-west streets hug the sun since, thanks to practically-minded 19th-century city planners, the city grid corresponds with the points on a compass. It’s a visual manifestation of a cyclical pattern that dictates the change of the seasons.
Sunday is, in fact, the first day of fall. The Northern and Southern hemispheres will get the same amount of daylight and the tilt of Earth’s axis will perfectly align with the sun at 7:43 a.m. Then, day by day, the Northern Hemisphere will tilt away from the sun and Chicago’s days will get shorter, the shortest being the winter solstice on Dec. 21. The Northern Hemisphere will then slowly inch back toward the sun, resulting in the spring equinox — and another Chicagohenge — on March 20.
Chicagohenge: Here’s how it works and where to see it during sunrise and sunset
The name Chicagohenge is derived from Stonehenge, said Hunter Miller, Adler Planetarium public observing educator. The prehistoric structure in Wiltshire, England, is believed to have been used to track solar cycles such as the equinoxes and solstices that indicate a change of season.
“It’s a historic event that we’ve kind of modernized here in Chicago,” said Butler, who has already started taking photos of the sun inching closer to perfect alignment with the cityscape. A near-perfect Chicagohenge is visible a few days before and a few days after Sunday’s prime showings.
Whether they eagerly await Chicagohenge like Butler, or not, people across the state are responding to the change of season. Shoppers on Michigan Avenue are checking out new fall clothing collections. Farmers downstate are beginning to harvest their crops. Children are exchanging Halloween costume ideas during recess.
Residents planning to watch Chicagohenge Sunday at sunrise should head to the western end of a downtown street and look east at 6:38 a.m. Sunday, Miller said. Those who hit their snooze alarm can catch the phenomenon again at 6:46 p.m. if they look west from the eastern end of the street. For the best view, Butler suggests finding a higher vantage point such as an elevated CTA platform. Some of his favorites are the State/Lake and LaSalle/Van Buren stations.
