Lacuna Glacier — a glacier in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska at about 1,090 m (3,576 ft) above sea level — is a rewarding subject for landscape photographers. The nearest town is Meadow Lakes, about 159 km (99 mi) away (Lacuna Glacier lies NW of town).
Lacuna Glacier is a glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve in the U.S. state of Alaska. The glacier begins on the south side of Mount Foraker in the Alaska Range, moving southwest to join the Yentna Glacier, to which Lacuna is a tributary.From the Wikipedia article “Lacuna Glacier”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Lacuna Glacier the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 26° (NNE) at the June solstice and 147° (SSE) in late December. Sunset moves from 334° (NNW) in June to 213° (SSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 51° in summer but only 4° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 8:07 AM | 89° E | 8:21 PM | 272° W | 27° | 12h 14m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 4:04 AM | 26° NNE | 12:13 AM | 334° NNW | 51° | 20h 10m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:51 AM | 88° E | 8:08 PM | 272° W | 27° | 12h 18m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 10:40 AM | 147° SSE | 3:30 PM | 213° SSW | 4° | 4h 49m |
Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north (90° = east, 270° = west). Computed for 2026; values change by less than a degree from year to year.
Golden hour & blue hour by month
Ice shows its blue best under overcast skies or in shade; bright sun turns glaciers white and flat.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9:17 AM | 10:18 AM | 12:48 PM | 1:44 PM | 4:14 PM | 5:15 PM | 5h 55m |
| February | 8:07 AM | 8:56 AM | 10:08 AM | 4:34 PM | 5:47 PM | 6:35 PM | 8h 51m |
| March | 7:39 AM | 8:24 AM | 9:25 AM | 7:07 PM | 8:07 PM | 8:52 PM | 11h 43m |
| April | 5:48 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:42 AM | 8:31 PM | 9:33 PM | 10:25 PM | 14h 54m |
| May | 3:43 AM | 5:06 AM | 6:23 AM | 9:44 PM | 11:01 PM | 12:24 AM | 17h 55m |
| June | — | 4:05 AM | 5:43 AM | 10:32 PM | 12:10 AM | — | 20h 05m |
| July | — | 4:41 AM | 6:08 AM | 10:18 PM | 11:44 PM | — | 19h 04m |
| August | 5:08 AM | 6:07 AM | 7:14 AM | 9:09 PM | 10:16 PM | 11:15 PM | 16h 08m |
| September | 6:46 AM | 7:32 AM | 8:32 AM | 7:32 PM | 8:32 PM | 9:19 PM | 13h 00m |
| October | 8:07 AM | 8:53 AM | 9:59 AM | 5:46 PM | 6:52 PM | 7:38 PM | 9h 59m |
| November | 8:29 AM | 9:24 AM | 11:04 AM | 2:39 PM | 4:19 PM | 5:15 PM | 6h 55m |
| December | 9:26 AM | 10:35 AM | — | — | 3:29 PM | 4:38 PM | 4h 54m |
Local time (America/Anchorage), including daylight saving time. Golden hour runs from about −4° to +6° solar altitude, so the morning golden hour begins during blue hour, before sunrise.
Milky Way & night sky
The Milky Way's bright core (in Sagittarius) barely clears the southern horizon at this latitude, so focus on winter Milky Way, aurora or star trails instead.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -12° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | -8° | — |
| March | Below 10° in darkness | — | -7° | — |
| April | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| May | No darkness | — | — | — |
| June | No darkness | — | — | — |
| July | No darkness | — | — | — |
| August | Below 10° in darkness | — | -7° | — |
| September | Below 10° in darkness | — | -9° | — |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | -9° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -13° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -22° | — |
Window when the galactic core is at least 10° high during astronomical darkness on the 15th of each month. Pick nights within a few days of the new moon. Plan exact nights with the Milky Way planner.
Estimated sky darkness: 1 Bortle 1 — Excellent dark-sky site. The Milky Way casts faint shadows; zodiacal light and airglow are obvious. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.94 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 0.0+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show March as the clearest month (about 53% average cloud cover) and July as the cloudiest (81%). July is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.
Average cloud cover (%)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 35 | 35 | 40 | 47 | 62 | 73 | 73 | 75 | 63 | 50 | 36 | 33 |
| Low °F | -30 | -27 | -27 | -12 | 6 | 23 | 37 | 28 | 13 | -8 | -21 | -24 |
| Precip. (in) | 3.5 | 3.7 | 2.5 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 4.7 | 6.1 | 7.4 | 7.5 | 5.7 | 4.4 | 4.3 |
Monthly climatology for the surrounding 1° grid cell from NASA POWER (MERRA-2). Mountain sites can be colder and cloudier than the cell average.
Photography tips for this glacier
- Include a person or boat for scale — glaciers are much larger than they look.
- Boat tours to tidewater glaciers offer calving shots; use fast shutter speeds and a telephoto.
- Never walk on a glacier without training and gear; crevasses hide under snow bridges.
- Expose carefully: ice and snow fool meters into underexposure, so add +1 to +2 stops.
- A polarizer deepens the blue of glacial ice and the turquoise of meltwater lakes.
- Bring a spare battery — cold weather and long exposures drain them fast.
Season: Summer offers access; late summer exposes the most bare ice before new snow.
Suggested gear: Telephoto lens, Polarizer, Waterproof shell, Spare batteries (cold drains them). Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Lacuna Glacier, closest first.
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Lacuna Glacier?
What time is golden hour at Lacuna Glacier?
Where does the sun rise and set at Lacuna Glacier?
Can you see the Milky Way from Lacuna Glacier?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Lacuna Glacier?
How far is Lacuna Glacier from Meadow Lakes?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, USGS GNIS / GeoNames, Wikipedia. Sun, moon and Milky Way times are computed by LWPhoto Atlas for 2026. Climate: NASA POWER. Sky darkness is a population-based estimate (Walker's law), not a measurement. See data sources & licenses.