South Bend is a city of about 101,516 people in Saint Joseph County, Indiana, at 211 m (692 ft). Today the sun rises at 8:03 AM and sets at 6:58 PM; the evening golden hour runs 6:19 PM – 7:15 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 | 8:10 AM | 8:53 AM | 4:57 PM | 5:40 PM | 6:10 PM | 9h 29m |
| February | 7:42 AM | 8:20 AM | 5:40 PM | 6:19 PM | 6:47 PM | 10h 37m |
| March | 7:58 AM | 8:35 AM | 7:15 PM | 7:52 PM | 8:19 PM | 11h 54m |
| April | 7:06 AM | 7:43 AM | 7:48 PM | 8:26 PM | 8:54 PM | 13h 20m |
| May | 6:26 AM | 7:06 AM | 8:18 PM | 8:58 PM | 9:30 PM | 14h 32m |
| June | 6:11 AM | 6:53 AM | 8:40 PM | 9:22 PM | 9:56 PM | 15h 11m |
| July | 6:24 AM | 7:05 AM | 8:38 PM | 9:19 PM | 9:52 PM | 14h 55m |
| August | 6:54 AM | 7:32 AM | 8:08 PM | 8:47 PM | 9:16 PM | 13h 52m |
| September | 7:26 AM | 8:03 AM | 7:20 PM | 7:56 PM | 8:24 PM | 12h 30m |
| October | 7:58 AM | 8:35 AM | 6:28 PM | 7:05 PM | 7:33 PM | 11h 08m |
| November | 7:35 AM | 8:16 AM | 4:45 PM | 5:26 PM | 5:56 PM | 9h 51m |
| December | 8:06 AM | 8:50 AM | 4:32 PM | 5:16 PM | 5:48 PM | 9h 10m |
Local time in America/Indiana/Indianapolis, daylight saving time included.
Where the sun rises and sets in South Bend
At South Bend 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 South Bend
27 photo locations lie within 80 km of South Bend. Each links to a full planning page with sunrise and sunset directions.
State Parks
State Park
State Park
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State ParkLakes
Lighthouses
Lighthouse
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Lighthouse
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
LighthouseBeaches
Botanical Gardens
Botanical Garden
Botanical GardenCovered Bridges
Night sky, Milky Way & aurora
The sky over central South Bend is estimated at Bortle 7 (suburban / urban transition). The nearest truly dark location in our database is Coldwater Lake, about 107 km (66 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coldwater Lake | Lake | 107 km (66 mi) | 3 |
| Harrison Lake State Park | State Park | 156 km (97 mi) | 3 |
| Chatterton | Ghost Town | 165 km (102 mi) | 3 |
| Brisco | Ghost Town | 169 km (105 mi) | 3 |
| Huntstown | Ghost Town | 179 km (111 mi) | 3 |
| Sloan | Ghost Town | 185 km (115 mi) | 3 |
| Portland Arch | Natural Arch | 187 km (116 mi) | 3 |
| Month | Milky Way core window (15th) | Hours | Max altitude |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | 5:15 AM – 6:15 AM | 1.0 | 16° |
| April | 3:16 AM – 5:16 AM | 2.0 | 19° |
| May | 1:14 AM – 4:24 AM | 3.2 | 19° |
| June | 11:33 PM – 3:53 AM | 4.3 | 19° |
| July | 11:23 PM – 2:33 AM | 3.2 | 19° |
| August | 10:33 PM – 12:33 AM | 2.0 | 19° |
| September | 9:31 PM – 10:31 PM | 1.0 | 16° |
Cloud cover by month
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show September as the clearest month (about 48% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (78%). July is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.