Here is why the northern U.S. will gain 100 minutes of sunlight next month

Sunnier days can improve mental health - but warmer temperatures can come with a deadly cost

With the start of meteorological spring comes an increase in evening sunlight and a chilly and weather active first few weeks.

In the northernmost parts of the country, forecasting company AccuWeather says residents could feel the sun’s warmth with more than 100 minutes of daylight that will be gained throughout March. The increase comes with the return of spring and “spring forward” and the start of daylight savings time. This year spring forward happens on March 9.

“Days will become noticeably longer throughout March, with many areas of the country gaining two or three minutes of sunlight with each passing day,” it noted. “This will add up fast, and by March 31 the sun will be above the horizon more than an hour longer than on March 1 for most of the United States.”

After being hammered by multiple rounds of atmospheric river storms in the winter that dumped heavy snow and freezing rain on the area, the Pacific Northwest will get the most sunlight first as longer days arrive.

The northernmost reaches of the U.S. will gain the most daylight come March. Forecasting company AccuWeather says some places, such as Seattle, could get as many as 100 extra minutes (AccuWeather)

That includes the rainy city of Seattle, which was under siege on Tuesday afternoon. More than 126,000 customers were left without power in the storm, including over 111,400 in Washington state, according to outage tracker PowerOutage.US.

For parts of the U.S. below New York City, the impact of more sunlight in March is less pronounced. The nation’s capital will gain around 70 minutes of sun and Los Angeles will get around an hour.

The biggest shift will take place in just under two weeks, when the clocks spring forward for daylight saving time. While many may welcome the shift amid the mental health impacts that come hand-in-hand with winter weather, forecasters advise people to beware of stronger sunlight and rising temperatures.

With sunlight comes mental health benefits. But, it also brings hotter temperatures (AFP via Getty Images)

Spring 2025 comes on the heels of the hottest two years on record, thanks to the impact of climate change and atmosphere-warming greenhouse gas emissions.

Heat deaths have doubled in the U.S. in recent decades. Overall, a total of more than 14,000 Americans have died directly from heat-related causes since 1979, according to a report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

“Unusually hot temperatures have become more common across parts of the United States in recent decades, extreme heat events (heat waves) have become more frequent and intense throughout the country, and these trends are expected to continue,” it said. “As a result, the risk of heat-related deaths and illness is also expected to increase unless people take steps to mitigate the impact or adapt.”