Davening at Neitz is Sometimes Just WRONG

The early bird may get the worm, but the late worm gets to live!!! Being early doesn't always mean better. While it is certainly true that one who davens right at neitz (sunrise, more properly called haNeitz) is doing something noble, one who davens right as he sees the sun rising may actual be worse off than someone who slept late. This is especially true this time of the year!

No, I am not talking about the silliness of having atomic clocks at a neitz minyan. While it is true that by davening at the exact time of listed sunrise (no matter how precise to the location one has calculated it for) is the most statistically improbable time for actual visible sunrise (based on barometric pressure and other weather disturbances), that is not what I am talking about. I am talking about someone who goes out and davens at the first visible sign of sunrise; the way it was done back in the times of the Gemara.

There is a phenomenon known as the Novaya Zemlya effect. Back in 1596 Willem Barentsz, the famous explorer, was sailing through the Arctic in search of a northeast passage. His unlucky crew got stuck in Novaya Zemlya (just north of Siberia), and had to stay there through the winter. As is the case above the Arctic Circle, the sun does not rise for a portion of the winter. The eager crew waited for sunrise and were anxious to be able to leave this frozen tundra.

Then in January of 1597 one of the crewmembers, Gerrit de Veer saw the sun peaking above the horizon. The fantastic thing about this was that this was TWO WEEKS before it was supposed to happen. Gerrit was the first person to record in writing what has now become known as the Novaya Zemlya effect.

The basic concept is that when there is a duration of warm weather immediately after a cold spell a mirage can appear on the horizon. This happens most often in spring and fall as the temperatures fluctuate a lot. The warm air creates a current near the horizon. It can be focussed right near the spot where the sun will rise (that is a warmer area). This current then acts as a lens and refracts the image of the sun from below the horizon to above it. Meaning, the sun looks like it rose even though it is really below the horizon. This sunrise often looks a little distorted, but someone with no knowledge of the effect would just think he was seeing a sunrise in a hazy patch in the sky.

While it seems clear that we take into account weather disturbances when calculating neitz, these are only the ones that are realtively small. Things like small weather disturbances and barometric pressure can affect visible sunrise and it seems that in the times of teh Gemara they based sunrise on visiblity. However, these only change sunrise by small amounts. The Novaya Zemlya effect can be very pronounced! So, before you get upset that you woke up early for nothing, make sure you know the difference between true and fake sunrise!!!

Another VERY VERY important fact that de Veer recorded. In fact, this one can even be life threatening!!! Eating polar bear livers can cause hypervitaminosis and can be fatal!!!