About This Project
Sunrise is a particularly special part of each day, but most of us miss out on seeing it. I am offering an opportunity for busy people to see, at their convenience, something beautiful, unique and fresh each day.
Fast, time-lapse video tends to highlight weather patterns that could otherwise go unnoticed. Even when rainy weather diminishes the view, the morning's sunrise video offers a fascinating insight into the day's beginning and the morning weather. Just like every sunrise, every video is unique!
And speaking of unique, it seems that this may be the only website offering daily-updated time-lapse video of the latest sunrise. Although there are plenty of individual sunrise videos from the past on YouTube, there is not a fresh one each day - as there is here.
In addition, every sunrise video created for NewcastleSunrise.com is archived here for playing or downloading. Check out the 'Archive' section for descriptions and access to each sunrise video.
These time-lapse videos show up to 80 minutes of 'real time' morning twilight, sunrise and fascinating cloud movement compressed into just ONE minute of convenient video - new and unique every morning!
The website that you see here is only a small part of my Sunrise Video project. By far, the most complex work has been the creation of the automated system that operates behind the website. Every morning, the system performs a complex series of tasks, reliably bringing a fresh sunrise video to you.
The actual time of these morning updates varies throughout the seasons as the days lengthen and shorten. Experience has shown that the latest time for updates to occur is around 7:40am.
What video format is used?
Each video consists of an MP4 container carrying iPhone-compatible H264 video and no audio. The videos play on this site via an embedded Flash Video player. However, if your browser does not have 'Flash Player', the video can be downloaded and played in your media player. Wherever the smartphone image is displayed, it is a direct download link for the MP4 video.
The special 'Sunrise Position' video on the front page is in M4V format. It should also be playable on most devices.
Can the videos be played offline, on my television or mobile device?
Check to see if your device is capable of playing MP4 files containing H264 video. If it can handle this format, feel free to download the MP4 sunrise video files from the Archive pages and view them on your mobile device or TV-attached media player. Download instructions are on the Archive pages.
Are other formats available?
If people require a particular sunrise video encoded in another format for a special purpose, I will try to oblige. I can also provide still images (JPEG) if required. You would have to contact me and state the date and time of the image that you require.
What do the numerical file names mean?
Video file names throughout this site are in 'YYYYMMDD' date format. For example, "20110421" means the year 2011, the 4th month (April), and the 21st day.
Contact details for feedback?
I would be pleased to hear constructive feedback or practical suggestions for this site, or simple greetings. I can be contacted via the following email address (disguised in an effort to reduce automatic spam). I'm sure you'll work it out:
