Popham Beach & the Kennebec Mouth · painted for this minute from Popham Beach’s own horizon and tonight’s cloud forecast
Golden hour · the sun is 2.9° up · clear at 11%
The sun goes down at
4:12 PM
T-00:05:00Popham Beach faces east, so the sun goes down behind you, over land, 19 min before the official sunset time of 4:31 PM. Face the water for the pink afterglow in the half hour after. Best light from 3:52 PM to 4:42 PM.
Sunset Score · Mostly clear (10% cloud): a good, dependable glow. Nothing low on the horizon, so you should see the sun all the way down.
Know Before You Go
Park access
day-use fee
$8 non-res / $6 Maine, 9 AM-sunset
Sunset side
over water
beach faces SW at the river mouth
Fox Island
low tide only
sandbar floods fast -- watch the tide
Best photo
Fort Popham
granite & Seguin Light at dusk
see you at sunset
Tonight’s times, the week ahead and the year by month are below. Kennebec Mouth Sunset runs nightly, weather permitting, from about two hours before sunset.
Tonight, Monday, November 2, the sun sets at 4:31 PM at Popham Beach. Popham Beach faces east, so the sun goes down behind the beach, over land. Turn and face the water for the pink and purple afterglow in the half hour after. Golden hour starts at 3:48 PM, and the sky stays light until about 4:59 PM. Tonight's Sunset Score is 7 out of 10. Mostly clear (10% cloud): a good, dependable glow.
Sunrise today was at 6:17 AM, which gives Popham Beach 10 hr 13 min of daylight. It is fully dark by about 5:33 PM.
The next seven evenings at Popham Beach: when the sun goes down, when golden hour starts and when the last light fades, plus the Sunset Score from each night's cloud forecast.
| Day | Sunset | Golden hour | Last light | Cloud | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonight | 4:31 PM | from 3:48 PM | 4:59 PM | 10% | 7/10 |
| Tue Nov 3 | 4:29 PM | from 3:47 PM | 4:58 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Wed Nov 4 | 4:28 PM | from 3:45 PM | 4:57 PM | 7% | 5/10 |
| Thu Nov 5 | 4:27 PM | from 3:44 PM | 4:56 PM | 27% | 7/10 |
| Fri Nov 6 | 4:25 PM | from 3:42 PM | 4:54 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Sat Nov 7 | 4:24 PM | from 3:41 PM | 4:53 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Sun Nov 8 | 4:23 PM | from 3:40 PM | 4:52 PM | 4% | 5/10 |
Popham Beach faces east, away from the sunset. The sun goes down behind you, over land, so the view to catch is the afterglow: the band of pink above the dark blue shadow of the earth rising over the water, best from sunset to about 30 minutes after.
Tonight’s timeline for Kennebec Mouth Sunset is at the top of this page.
The spot where the sun sets moves along the horizon through the year. Around June 21 it goes down furthest north, in the west-north-west (300°); around December 21 it goes down furthest south, in the south-west (235°). In June it sets behind the beach. In December it sets behind the beach.
Golden hour tonight runs from 3:48 PM to sunset at 4:31 PM. The sun is low, the light is warm and soft, and shadows are long. It is the best time for photos of people on the beach.
Blue hour follows, from about 4:48 PM to 5:11 PM, when the sun is below the horizon and the sky turns deep blue. The first lights come on along the shore and the water holds the last of the color.
Sunrise, sunset and daylight on the 15th of each month. Over the next year the earliest sunset is 4:03 PM (Thu Dec 10) and the latest is 8:26 PM (Sun Jun 27). Times are local and include daylight saving time where it applies.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|
| November 2026 | 6:35 AM | 4:16 PM | 9 hr 41 min |
| December 2026 | 7:07 AM | 4:04 PM | 8 hr 57 min |
| January 2027 | 7:11 AM | 4:28 PM | 9 hr 17 min |
| February 2027 | 6:40 AM | 5:10 PM | 10 hr 30 min |
| March 2027 | 6:53 AM | 6:46 PM | 11 hr 52 min |
| April 2027 | 5:58 AM | 7:23 PM | 13 hr 25 min |
| May 2027 | 5:16 AM | 7:58 PM | 14 hr 43 min |
| June 2027 | 4:58 AM | 8:24 PM | 15 hr 26 min |
| July 2027 | 5:12 AM | 8:20 PM | 15 hr 8 min |
| August 2027 | 5:45 AM | 7:46 PM | 14 hr 1 min |
| September 2027 | 6:19 AM | 6:53 PM | 12 hr 33 min |
| October 2027 | 6:54 AM | 5:58 PM | 11 hr 4 min |
The official sunset time is when the top of the sun sinks below a flat sea horizon. We also check Popham Beach’s real horizon: the hills, headlands and islands you can see from the sand. When land is in the way, the sun disappears before the official time, and we show you that earlier time. The Sunset Score rates how colorful the sky should be from the cloud forecast at sunset. Buildings are not included, so a tall hotel beside you can still hide the last minute.
The sun sets at 4:31 PM at Popham Beach today (Monday, November 2).
The sun rose at 6:17 AM at Popham Beach today.
10 hr 13 min of daylight, from 6:17 AM to 4:31 PM.
Golden hour at Popham Beach runs from 3:48 PM to sunset at 4:31 PM, when the sun is low and the light turns warm and soft. Blue hour follows, from 4:48 PM to 5:11 PM.
The sky stays light enough to see without a flashlight until about 4:59 PM, the end of civil twilight. It is fully dark by about 5:33 PM.
Tonight's Sunset Score is 7 out of 10, from the cloud forecast at sunset. Mostly clear (10% cloud): a good, dependable glow.
Popham Beach faces east, so the sun sets behind the beach, over land. Tonight it goes down in the west-south-west.
No. Popham Beach faces east, so the sun sets behind you, over land. The show over the water is the afterglow in the half hour after sunset.
Over the next year the earliest sunset at Popham Beach is 4:03 PM on Thursday, December 10, and the latest is 8:26 PM on Sunday, June 27.
Popham Beach & the Kennebec Mouth is the favorite spot at Popham Beach. Get there 30 to 45 minutes before sunset for a good place, and stay 20 minutes after for the afterglow.
| Old Orchard Beach sunset | 33 mi | 4:33 PM |
|---|---|---|
| Ogunquit Beach sunset | 53 mi | 4:35 PM |
| York Beach sunset | 57 mi | 4:35 PM |
| Wallis Sands sunset | 69 mi | 4:36 PM |
| Hampton Beach sunset | 77 mi | 4:36 PM |
| Wingaersheek Beach sunset | 87 mi | 4:36 PM |
See every beach on one map: sunset times tonight across the US →