SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4) — The seasons are quickly changing here in Utah. And with them, residents will notice later sunsets as wintertime departs.

What’s more, with daylight saving time (DST) just around the corner beginning on March 12 — just 10 days away now — the times will be changing even sooner than we realize.

Currently, as of March 2, locals can expect the sun to drop by 6:19 p.m. Once the DST changes arrive, and Utahns turn their clocks an hour later to “spring forward,” the evening will start at roughly 7:30 p.m.

By the end of the month, March 31, we won’t see that sunset until approximately 7:51 p.m.

These times will pale in comparison to later this year, when the days are officially the longest, as the 2023 summer solstice arrives on June 21. By that time, the Utah sunset doesn’t come about until 9:02 p.m., giving us even more time to enjoy the season’s warmest weather.

But could DST possibly become permanent in Utah? In 2020, Utah passed a trigger law that would make DST permanent as soon as Congress approves the same. In 2022, the U.S. Senate passed such a bill, but it died in the U.S. House as congressional leaders decided to conduct a study on the change instead. That study won’t be complete until the end of 2023.

Supporters of this bill say the extra hour of daylight in the evening would allow for more outdoor recreation during the winter.

On the other end of the issue, medical experts say switching to permanent standard time would be better, as the late sunsets of daylight saving time can delay the body’s production of melatonin, leading to sleep loss and other related health problems.

Under permanent daylight time, sunrise would be after 8 a.m. for about four months of the year.

Stay on top of all day-to-day time changes and current weather conditions by visiting the ABC4 weather page.