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View across a dock in the Gulf of Naples at night

Night or nighttime (sp. night-time or night time) is the period from sunset to sunrise in each twenty-four hours^[1], when the Sun is below the horizon. However it can be defined differently and is subjective. Night can be defined as the time between bedtime and morning^[2]. There is no exact time for when night begins and ends (equally true with evening). The start of night begins when evening ends, which is subjective, but is typically believed to end at astronomical sunset, which is when night may begin. There can be no precise definition in terms of clock time, but it is usually considered to start around 9 pm and to last to about 4 am^[3]. Since sunset and sunrise vary throughout the year^[4] there can be no precise definition in terms of clock time. Night and morning overlap when one considers morning to start past 12 am (however this is subjective and may others consider morning to begin at sunrise)^[5], which can be described as 'morning-night duality'.

Night is used as a farewell, 'good night'. And sometimes shortened to 'night'. Unlike 'good morning', 'good afternoon', and 'good evening', 'good night' is typically not used a greeting.^[6]

Complete darkness or astronomical night is the period between astronomical dusk and astronomical dawn when the Sun is between 18 and 90 degrees below the horizon and does not illuminate the sky. As seen from latitudes between 48.5° and 66.5° north or south of the Equator, complete darkness does not occur around the summer solstice because although the Sun sets, it is never more than 18° below the horizon at lower culmination.

The opposite of night is day (or "daytime", to distinguish it from "day" referring to a 24-hour period). The start and end points of time for a night vary, based on factors such as season, latitude, longitude, and time zone. Twilight is the period of night after sunset or before sunrise when the Sun still illuminates the sky when it is below the horizon. At any given time, one side of Earth is bathed in sunlight (the daytime) while the other side is in the shadow caused by Earth blocking the sunlight. The central part of the shadow is called the umbra.

Natural illumination at night is still provided by a combination of moonlight, planetary light, starlight, zodiacal light, gegenschein, and airglow. In some circumstances, aurorae, lightning, and bioluminescence can provide some illumination. The glow provided by artificial lighting is sometimes referred to as light pollution because it can interfere with observational astronomy and ecosystems.

Duration and geography

The drainage basin of the Nile river and delta at night

On Earth, an average night lasts shorter than daytime due to two factors. Firstly, the Sun's apparent disk is not a point, but has an angular diameter of about 32 arcminutes (32'). Secondly, the atmosphere refracts sunlight so that some of it reaches the ground when the Sun is below the horizon by about 34'. The combination of these two factors means that light reaches the ground when the center of the solar disk is below the horizon by about 50'. Without these effects, daytime and night would be the same length on both equinoxes, the moments when the Sun appears to contact the celestial equator. On the equinoxes, daytime actually lasts almost 14 minutes longer than night does at the Equator, and even longer towards the poles.

The summer and winter solstices mark the shortest and longest nights, respectively. The closer a location is to either the North Pole or the South Pole, the wider the range of variation in the night's duration. Although daytime and night nearly equalize in length on the equinoxes, the ratio of night to day changes more rapidly at high latitudes than at low latitudes before and after an equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere, Denmark experiences shorter nights in June than India. In the Southern Hemisphere, Antarctica sees longer nights in June than Chile. Both hemispheres experience the same patterns of night length at the same latitudes, but the cycles are 6 months apart so that one hemisphere experiences long nights (winter) while the other is experiencing short nights (summer).

In the region within either polar circle, the variation in daylight hours is so extreme that part of summer sees a period without night intervening between consecutive days, while part of winter sees a period without daytime intervening between consecutive nights.

On other celestial bodies

Waning moon

Nótt, the personification of night in Norse mythology, rides her horse in this 19th-century painting by Peter Nicolai Arbo.

The phenomenon of day and night is due to the rotation of a celestial body about its axis, creating an illusion of the sun rising and setting. Different bodies spin at very different rates, however. Some may spin much faster than Earth, while others spin extremely slowly, leading to very long days and nights. The planet Venus rotates once every 224.7 days – by far the slowest rotation period of any of the major planets. In contrast, the gas giant Jupiter's sidereal day is only 9 hours and 56 minutes.^[7] However, it is not just the sidereal rotation period which determines the length of a planet's day-night cycle but the length of its orbital period as well - Venus has a rotation period of 224.7 days, but a day-night cycle just 116.75 days long due to its retrograde rotation and orbital motion around the Sun. Mercury has the longest day-night cycle as a result of its 3:2 resonance between its orbital period and rotation period - this resonance gives it a day-night cycle 176 days long. A planet may experience large temperature variations between day and night, such as Mercury, the planet closest to the sun. This is one consideration in terms of planetary habitability or the possibility of extraterrestrial life.

Impact on life

The disappearance of sunlight, the primary energy source for life on Earth, has dramatic impacts on the morphology, physiology and behavior of almost every organism. Some animals sleep during the night, whilst other nocturnal animals including moths and crickets are active during this time. The effects of day and night are not seen in the animal kingdom alone; plants have also evolved adaptations to cope best with the lack of sunlight during this time. For example, crassulacean acid metabolism is a unique type of carbon fixation which allows photosynthetic plants to store carbon dioxide in their tissues as organic acids during the night, which can then be used during the day to synthesize carbohydrates. This allows them to keep their stomata closed during the daytime, preventing transpiration of precious water.

As artificial lighting has improved, especially after the Industrial Revolution, night time activity has increased and become a significant part of the economy in most places. Many establishments, such as nightclubs, bars, convenience stores, fast-food restaurants, gas stations, distribution facilities, and police stations now operate 24 hours a day or stay open as late as 1 or 2 a. m. Even without artificial light, moonlight sometimes makes it possible to travel or work outdoors at night.

Cultural aspects

Night is often associated with danger and evil, because of the psychological connection of night's all-encompassing darkness to the fear of the unknown and darkness's obstruction of a major sensory system (the sense of sight). Nighttime is naturally associated with vulnerability and danger for human physical survival. Criminals, animals, and other potential dangers can be concealed by darkness. Midnight has a particular importance in human imagination and culture.

The belief in magic often includes the idea that magic and magicians are more powerful at night. Seances of spiritualism are usually conducted closer to midnight. Similarly, mythical and folkloric creatures as vampires and werewolves are described as being more active at night. Ghosts are believed to wander around almost exclusively during night-time. In almost all cultures, there exist stories and legends warning of the dangers of night-time. In fact, the Saxons called the darkness of night the 'death mist'.^{[citation needed]}

In literature, night and the lack of light are often color-associated with blackness which is historically symbolic in many cultures for villainy, non-existence, or a lack of knowledge (with the knowledge usually symbolized by light or illumination).

The cultural significance of the night in Islam differs from that in Western culture. The Quran was revealed during the Night of Power, the most significant night according to Islam. Muhammad made his famous journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and then to heaven in the night. Another prophet, Abraham came to a realization of the supreme being in charge of the universe at night.

See also

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More spoken articles

• Earth's shadow


• Night aviation regulations in the US


• Night sky


• Nightlife


• Nocturne


• Olbers' paradox

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Night.

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  Quotations related to Night at Wikiquote


• 
  The dictionary definition of night at Wiktionary