Jet WindowWindow seat by route · SFO to DEN
San Francisco to Denver: which side of the plane?
Sun on the right.
The sun is on the right on 5 of the 6 daylight departures we modeled. Sit right for the light and any sunset; sit left to keep the glare off and the ground easier to photograph.
The sun, by departure time
Where the light will be.
Departure times are local to San Francisco. About 2 h 15 min in the air over 838 nautical miles.
| Leaving at | Winter (mid-December) | Summer (mid-June) |
|---|---|---|
| 7 a.m. | Right · sun on this side | Right · sun on this side |
| Noon | Right · sun on this side | Right · sun on this side |
| 5 p.m. | Right · sunset 5 minutes in | Left · sun on this side |
| 10 p.m. | Dark the whole way | Dark the whole way |
Out of the window
What you can look for.
Out on the edge of San Francisco Bay. Out on the high plains at over a mile above the sea.
Along the way
- The Sierra Nevada, a granite wall along the edge of the desert below you, so either side, in daylight
- The Rocky Mountains, rank after rank of them below you, so either side, in daylight
Leaving San Francisco
Many departures bank out over the Bay, swinging the city and the Golden Gate into view.
Arriving in Denver
The snow-topped wall of the Colorado Front Range, from Pikes Peak to Longs Peak, stands along the western horizon beyond the brown high plains.
How this was worked out
The same engine as the app.
These answers come from the model Jet Window uses on your phone: the sun's position from the cabin's own horizon at cruise, sampled along the great-circle path, with the landmark and airport notes the app shows. This page has to assume a departure time and a flight time, and a real flight bends with winds, airways and the runway in use. Cloud is not modeled.
In the app, Jet Window works it out for your actual flight, at its real departure time, and tells you when to look.
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