Merrillville is a city of about 35,224 people in Lake County, Indiana, at 200 m (656 ft). Today the sun rises at 7:07 AM and sets at 6:02 PM; the evening golden hour runs 5:24 PM – 6:19 PM. Below are monthly times, sun directions, the best photo locations within 80 km and the nearest dark skies.
Sunrise, sunset & golden hour by month
| Month (15th) | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:14 AM | 7:57 AM | 4:02 PM | 4:45 PM | 5:15 PM | 9h 30m |
| February | 6:46 AM | 7:24 AM | 4:45 PM | 5:23 PM | 5:52 PM | 10h 38m |
| March | 7:02 AM | 7:39 AM | 6:19 PM | 6:56 PM | 7:24 PM | 11h 54m |
| April | 6:10 AM | 6:47 AM | 6:52 PM | 7:30 PM | 7:58 PM | 13h 19m |
| May | 5:31 AM | 6:11 AM | 7:22 PM | 8:02 PM | 8:34 PM | 14h 31m |
| June | 5:16 AM | 5:58 AM | 7:44 PM | 8:25 PM | 8:59 PM | 15h 10m |
| July | 5:29 AM | 6:10 AM | 7:42 PM | 8:23 PM | 8:55 PM | 14h 53m |
| August | 5:59 AM | 6:37 AM | 7:12 PM | 7:50 PM | 8:20 PM | 13h 51m |
| September | 6:30 AM | 7:07 AM | 6:24 PM | 7:01 PM | 7:28 PM | 12h 30m |
| October | 7:02 AM | 7:39 AM | 5:32 PM | 6:10 PM | 6:38 PM | 11h 08m |
| November | 6:39 AM | 7:20 AM | 3:50 PM | 4:31 PM | 5:01 PM | 9h 52m |
| December | 7:10 AM | 7:54 AM | 3:37 PM | 4:21 PM | 4:53 PM | 9h 12m |
Local time in America/Chicago, daylight saving time included.
Where the sun rises and sets in Merrillville
At Merrillville the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 57° (ENE) at the June solstice and 121° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 303° (WNW) in June to 239° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 72° in summer but only 25° in winter.
Best photo spots near Merrillville
58 photo locations lie within 80 km of Merrillville. Each links to a full planning page with sunrise and sunset directions.
Waterfalls
State Parks
State Park
State Park
State Park
State Park
State Park
State ParkLakes
Lighthouses
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
LighthouseBeaches
Botanical Gardens
Botanical Garden
Botanical Garden
Botanical Garden
Botanical Garden
Botanical Garden
Botanical GardenNight sky, Milky Way & aurora
The sky over central Merrillville is estimated at Bortle 7 (suburban / urban transition). The nearest truly dark location in our database is Brisco, about 119 km (74 mi) away (Bortle 3). The Milky Way core is up during darkness from March to September, best in June. Northern lights need roughly Kp 6.0+ to appear low on the northern horizon here.
Darkest skies within 200 km
| Location | Type | Distance | Est. Bortle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brisco | Ghost Town | 119 km (74 mi) | 3 |
| Chatterton | Ghost Town | 120 km (75 mi) | 3 |
| Sloan | Ghost Town | 132 km (82 mi) | 3 |
| Middle Fork River Forest Preserve | Dark Sky Place | 133 km (83 mi) | 3 |
| Portland Arch | Natural Arch | 141 km (87 mi) | 3 |
| Cades Mill Bridge | Covered Bridge | 158 km (98 mi) | 3 |
| Wallace Covered Bridge | Covered Bridge | 167 km (104 mi) | 3 |
| Eugene Covered Bridge | Covered Bridge | 169 km (105 mi) | 3 |
| Month | Milky Way core window (15th) | Hours | Max altitude |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | 4:18 AM – 5:18 AM | 1.0 | 16° |
| April | 2:19 AM – 4:19 AM | 2.0 | 19° |
| May | 12:17 AM – 3:27 AM | 3.2 | 20° |
| June | 10:35 PM – 3:05 AM | 4.5 | 20° |
| July | 10:25 PM – 1:35 AM | 3.2 | 20° |
| August | 9:35 PM – 11:35 PM | 2.0 | 19° |
| September | 8:35 PM – 9:35 PM | 1.0 | 16° |
| October | 7:41 PM – 7:41 PM | 0.0 | 10° |
Cloud cover by month
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show September as the clearest month (about 46% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (73%). July is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.