(SOUTHERN COLORADO) — If you are anything like the FOX21 Storm Team, your thoughts are constantly on the future. Southern Colorado had its shortest day of the season back on Dec. 20, 2024. Since then, the region has slowly but surely been gaining a steady amount of daylight.

Across the United States, staggered based off of latittude, everyone is gaining at least a small amount of daylight each day. Most of Southern Colorado will have gained roughly an hour of sunlight by the end of the month. Areas further north, like Montana, will see a much more drastic increase. Areas further south, like Miami, may not even notice the difference.

For Colorado Springs specifically, our first 7 p.m. sunset of the year will happen on March 9. Daylength during this time will be over 11 and a half hours long; as of early February, the Springs is only getting 10 and a half hours.

The significant jump of our later sunset time is occurring because of one specific reason: Daylight Saving Time. Everyone will spring forward one hour on March 9, bringing our sunsets forward to a much later time frame.

If a visual helps, we’ve got you covered. During your commute home at 6 p.m., our sky will start to look a lot different. For now, early February, the sun will still set before most have a chance to get home but the steady increase in daylight will soon change that. If 7 p.m. sunsets are still too early for you, have no fear. Our first 8 p.m. sunset is just over three months away.