Lāhainā Noon - When shadows disappear.

What Is Lāhainā Noon?

Lāhainā noon is a celestial phenomenon that occurs twice a year. At this time the sun is directly overhead and the shadow of vertical objects like flagpoles, traffic cones, light poles, etc. falls directly below them and seems to disappear momentarily.

Origin of the Name What is Noon?

The word "Lāhainā" is of Hawaiian origin which means "cruel sun". It was chosen by the Bishop Museum of Hawaii in the 1990s. The ancient name for the event was "kau ka lā i ka lolo" which means "the sun rests on the brains".

Hawaii is located in the tropical zone. It lies 20° N(19.8968° N to be exact) from the equator near the Tropic of Cancer. The sun is overhead here twice a year, i.e., the rays of the sun are perpendicular (90°) to the surface of the ground.

The times when the sun is directly overhead are shown here in the image. The first time when the sun is directly overhead is in May and the second time is in July.

Sky Gate

The image at the top shows the shadow at normal noon. The image at the bottom shows the shadow at Lāhainā noon.

Source: Reddit

Sky Gate is a sculpture near Honolulu Hale(the official seat of the government) sculpted by world-famous artist Isamu Noguchi. The sculpture has bendy and bumpy rings that generally cast a curvy and twisted shadow but during the Lāhainā noon, it casts a circle on the ground.

REFERENCES:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahaina_Noon

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/sky-gate

https://mauihacks.com/how-long-lahaina-noon-last/