I made calendars with space to write in when sunset will be on Friday night to make it easier at a glance to prepare for Sabbath. (Click here to get the calendars.) But then I realized I was curious how other ladies determine what time sunset will be where they live. Also, I was sick of my method. For years, I just open my Weather Channel app and have to scroll way down to find sunset, which is not really a big deal, except I’m sick of seeing all of the nasty ads they show! And if I accidentally click on one, uh oh!  And while the method of just looking outside certainly works most of the time, I do like to plan ahead and it’s often so cloudy here in Michigan that it’s hard to know exactly.

So, I asked the Torah Sisters on Facebook what their favorite tools were to know what time sunset will be, and as usual, they came through!  Below is a list of the ones that got the most mentions. Thank you, Sisters!

• Sunrise Companion app shows sunset and sunrise times and shows them ahead for the entire month! This one might be my new favorite as it’s very simple! It comes in miliary time, but you can switch that in the settings.
• The Sabbath App is an app for Apple and Android.
• Just ask Google “Hey Google, What time is sunset Friday night?”
• Fox Weather App is one I’ve been using the more and the Weather Channel app less. The sunset time is listed right near the top instead of scrolling through ugly nasty ads. For Apple.  And for Android.
• TimeandDate.com/sun is website where you can enter in your zip code and get the sunset times ahead for the entire month! This is very handy to then write the times in on your calendars that come in the Goody Bag.
• Shabbat Times App shows sunset times and more.  For Apple and Android.
• Stellarium.org is astronomy software for your computer. “It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope.”
• Hebcal.com shows sunset times and more.
• LunaSoCal app shows sunset times and more. Apple and Android.

Finally, I want to share exactly what a Sister in Alaska said, “Living in Alaska caused me to seek out this answer. Those 20 hours of sunlight or darkness ‘days’ are a bit confusing. In my study… I have come to see erev… as the time of mixing. A length of time… not an exact calculated micro second. A mixing of the time when the day’s activities become night activity…. The period of time that actually begins the new ‘day’ beginning as the night activities begin. Anyone in the far north or south could not measure the sunlight hours as a determinate measure.
I submit… it is a space of time… not an exact second. As I see it.” That was from Theresa Vanderjagt.  Click here to see Theresa’s book on Amazon, “Hebrew Love Letters: A Picture Study of the Hebrew Aleph Bet.”