Dawn and dusk are opposite times of the day. Dawn is the time of day when light first appears while Dusk is the time of the day when light disappears in the evening. The time of these two phenomena depends on the sunrise and sunset. In this article, we are going to look at this difference between Dawn and Dusk.
What is Dawn?
The term Dawn derived from Old English term ‘dagian’ refers to the time of day when light first appears. This marks the beginning of twilight, before sunrise. Start of the dawn is explained by different definitions and their difference lies in the amount of sunlight that must be present at dawn. They are known as,
- Astronomical dawn: the Sun is 18 degrees below the horizon in the morning.
- Nautical dawn: The Sun is 12 degrees below the horizon in the morning.
- Civil dawn: The Sun is 6 degrees below the horizon in the morning.
The sound of birds, also known as dawn chorus is a special feature that can be noticed in the dawn. Moreover, in many religions, dawn is described to be the ideal time to start prayers.
What is dusk?
The term dusk derived from the Old English term ‘dox’ meaning dark, swarthy refers to the time of the day when light disappears in the evening. This is the darkest stage of twilight in the evening. Dusk too can be defined according to three technical definitions.
- Civil dusk: The sun is 6 degrees below the horizon in the evening.
- Nautical dusk: The sun is 12 degrees below the horizon in the evening.
- Astronomical dusk: the sun is 18 degrees below the horizon in the evening.
What is the difference between Dawn and Dusk?
Dawn and dusk are antonyms, i.e. they mean the complete opposites. The main difference between them is concerned with light; Dawn marks the appearance of the light while dusk marks the disappearance of light. Similarly, dawn is the beginning of twilight in the morning while dusk is the final stage of the twilight in the evening. Moreover, dawn occurs before sunrise while dusk occurs after sunset. Dawn could be called the start of the day while dusk can be called the end of the day. In addition, dusk tend to be busier, as many working people are rushing to go home whereas dawn is more peaceful as many people are asleep.
