Video: Astrophysicist Talks About "Manhattanhenge" Sunset

By: Nina Sen, Life's Little Mysteries Contributor

Date: 14 July 2012 Time: 02:47 AM ET

Screenshot of Manhattanhenge footage taken July 12.
CREDIT: YouTube | 4ub3n

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The New York City skyline was lit up Wednesday night when the sunset was perfectly aligned with the street grid. The sunset fell between the tall skyscrapers in a phenomenon astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson calls "Manhattanhenge." The event occurs two times a year and is likely confined to New York. In this video, Tyson talks about how future anthropologists may think the alignment has some historical significance.

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