Jeremy Siegel: You're listening to Morning Edition. The days are getting shorter and after the weekend time change, sunsets are earlier, like really early, in the 4:00 hour as we are heading into winter.

Paris Alston: Oh, my goodness. You know, Jeremy likes this because of our sleep schedule. It does help getting to bed.

Siegel: Yeah, get to bed early, get some light in the morning.

Alston: The sun has already been down. I am not a fan because seasonal affective disorder is real. But here to argue why we should embrace it, and maybe even has some tips for dealing with that, is our very own meteorologist Dave Epstein. Hey, Dave. Happy Election Day.

Dave Epstein: Hey, good to see you. Happy Election Day. Yeah, a few showers this morning and we're going to be warm this afternoon, into the 60s. A little taste of spring across the area.

Siegel: We are getting a taste of spring, but it is getting dark out earlier. Before we do get into your admirable optimism with the season, can you lay out how much light we are actually losing? Like, today's sunset is just after 4:30 p.m. How much darker is it going to get in the weeks ahead?

Epstein: Yeah. So the earliest sunset of the year comes on Dec. 9, and that's about 4:11 p.m. So we'll lose a little more time here. You know, same thing happens every year. We did gain --- morning people, we did gain some, when you subtract the fact that we're just losing light in general, we did gain about 56 minutes in the morning once we move the clocks back that hour. So the sunrises are actually earlier now, which is quite nice. And yeah, so the earliest sunset is not that far away. About a month, just over a month from today.

Alston: So it sounds like you're a bit of a fan of this. I mean, I think I've made it clear, I don't need those 56 minutes in the morning. I need them later in the day when I could like, go out and enjoy some stuff and have a little light as the day is winding down. But I mean, tell me more about this. Are you embracing the extra light in the morning?

Epstein: Yeah, I mean, so here's the thing. There's nothing we can do about it. And, you know, we could sit here and talk for the next 3 hours about the light. And the reality is what the reality is. It's darker, there's less light. We have over 15 hours of daylight in June, and we get down to just about 9 hours of daylight. So we lose basically 6 hours of it over the course of June to December, and then we start getting it again. Happens every year. The planet's moving at 67,000 miles an hour around the sun. But, you know, it's an opportunity. Because you can't do anything about it. Just embrace it.

Alston: I mean, there's some lawmakers that might disagree with you, though, right?

Siegel: We have reported on that. Yeah, there is. There is a push to change it. But, Dave, how do you embrace darkness, less light?

Epstein: I mean, I just first of all, I'm making dinner earlier. So, you know, in the summer, I'm out gardening and I don't like to come in at 6:00 to start making dinner because it's still good time. But now I can come in at 4:30, I can make a nicer dinner, I can eat earlier, I can get to bed earlier, I'm up earlier. I feel healthier. Even if we were staying on Daylight Savings Time, you're not going to add any time. You're just going to add an hour in the evening. And it's winter. You're not going to be outside going to the beach in January because it's getting dark instead of 4:11 at 5:11. So that's the other thing. I mean, moving the clocks is a pain. And I argue don't move it just because there's no point in it. But it's not going to give us any more light overall. Obviously, you can't change the position of the sun. The other thing is that I like to look outside, and just sort of appreciate the fact that things are slowing down. I mean, this morning I'll do some raking, I'm going to do some pruning. I like noticing some of the evergreens, which tend to pop now that the deciduous trees are losing their leaves, the barks of trees are more noticeable. Now you have things like dogwood where some of the stems are red or yellow. You've got stewartia bark, which is absolutely beautiful. Paper bark, maple bark, which is beautiful. Some of the holly berries are really showing right now. You've got the ilex verticillata, which is showing, which is the winter berry. It's very red. The birds are loving that. There's a lot to observe this time of year. It's slowing down. It's not hot, it's not super cold yet either. I actually love November.

Alston: It is a good month, right? I mean, it is like, at a certain point we all do sort of have to lean in because we have holidays coming up, which can be mixed for people. But there's a lot of excitement there. And I appreciate that you're a man of conviction, Dave. I welcome it.

Epstein: Thank you.

Siegel: So do you have any tips real quick before we go, Dave, about like avoiding some of the difficulty that might come along with it being darker outside?

Epstein: Yeah. So if you're able, there's really good research about trying to expose yourself to actual natural light during the course of the day. So obviously we have a smaller window to do that. But if you can get outside, no sunscreen, 30 to 60 minutes and let that light hit you. The research, and again, it's not super conclusive, but there is research out there that says that's better than, say, a light box or some of those other things. So folks that do suffer, which is real, from seasonal affective disorder, try to push yourself to get outside, even on a cold day. Let that light hit your face, really embrace it, and it tends to help your circadian rhythms. It helps you sleep better. And that's what that's my biggest thing, is get yourself outside.

Alston: All right. Good to know. Well, that is GBH meteorologist Dave Epstein. Thank you so much.

Epstein: You're welcome.

Siegel: This is GBH News.

It happens like clockwork: Winter comes. Sunsets creep closer to 5:30 p.m., then 4:30, then almost 4 p.m. And in sets a general sense of malaise.

As the weather gets colder and days get shorter, there’s not much to do but embrace it, GBH meteorologist Dave Epstein said.

“You know, same thing happens every year,” Epstein said.

The year’s earliest sunset will come Dec. 9, at 4:11 p.m., Epstein said.

“Here's the thing: There's nothing we can do about it,” he said. “We could sit here and talk for the next three hours about the light. And the reality is what the reality is.”

While Congress occasionally takes up the issue, Epstein said moving to year-round Daylight Savings Time may not be as helpful as they think.

“Obviously, you can’t change the position of the sun,” he said. “It’s winter. You’re not going to be outside going to the beach in January because it’s getting dark — instead of 4:11 p.m. — at 5:11 p.m.”

Boston gets about 15 hours of daylight in June, and just about 9 in December, Epstein said. That loss of six hours of daylight can bring legitimate health concerns, like seasonal affective disorder, especially for people who are unable to go outside during daylight hours.

“If you’re able, there’s really good research about trying to expose yourself to actual natural light during the course of the day,” he said. “Try to push yourself to get outside, even on a cold day. Let that light hit your face, really embrace it, and it tends to help your circadian rhythms.”

Epstein said he embraces the loss of light. It’s part of nature’s way, he said.

“I like to look outside and just sort of appreciate the fact that things are slowing down,” he said. “This morning, I’ll do some raking, I’m going to do some pruning. I like noticing some of the evergreens, which tend to pop now that the deciduous trees are losing their leaves, the barks of trees are more noticeable.”

Take a look at local dogwoods with red or yellow stems, he said, or at the beautiful barks of stewartias. Try to spot holly berries and winterberries.

“There’s a lot to observe this time of year,” he said. “It’s slowing down. It’s not hot, it’s not super cold yet either. I actually love November.”