On Dec. 22, about ten days before the New Year 2025, tourists are watching the sunrise at Jeongdongjin Beach, a popular sunrise spot in Gangneung, Gangwon. /Courtesy of Yonhap News

The first sunrise of the new year in 2025 will rise over Dokdo at 7:26 a.m. This year, the last place to see the sunset will be Shinan Gageo-do, where the sun is expected to set at 5:40 p.m.

The Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute announced on the 23rd the sunset times for December 31 and the sunrise times for January 1 in major regions. Inland, the sun will rise earliest at 7:31 a.m. in Ulsan at Ganjeolgot and Bangojin.

The sunrise times for the new year in major cities are as follows: Seoul at 7:47 a.m., Busan at 7:32 a.m., Daegu at 7:36 a.m., Incheon at 7:48 a.m., Daejeon at 7:42 a.m., and Gwangju at 7:41 a.m. In Gangneung Jeongdongjin, famous for its sunrise views, the sun will rise at 7:39 a.m., while in Jeju Seongsan Ilchulbong, it will rise at 7:36 a.m.

Sunrise refers to the moment when the upper part of the sun begins to appear on the horizon or skyline. The sunrise times announced by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute are calculated based on an altitude of 0 meters, meaning that the higher the altitude, the earlier the sunrise. The actual sunrise time at an altitude of 100 meters is approximately 2 minutes earlier than the announced time.

The last sunset of the year will occur in Seoul at 5:24 p.m., in Busan at 5:22 p.m., in Daegu at 5:22 p.m., in Incheon at 5:25 p.m., in Daejeon at 5:25 p.m., in Gwangju at 5:31 p.m., and in Ulsan at 5:20 p.m. The sunrise and sunset times across the country can be found on the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute's Astronomy and Space Knowledge Information website under the Life Astronomy section (http://astro.kasi.re.kr/life/pageView/6).