Yes, the days are getting shorter. Here's when to catch the earliest sunsets in San Diego

San Diegans, if you've caught yourself in awe of how quickly the sun goes down now, it's not just your imagination.

We are officially in the fall season and our skies will get progressively darker until the winter solstice, which is the darkest day of the year (in the northern hemisphere) and also when our hours of sunlight start growing again.

That also means our famously gorgeous sunsets are arriving earlier. (Got amazing sunset pictures? We'd love to see! Send them to isee@nbcsandiego.com or upload them here.)

While the daylight saving time switch we are swiftly approaching remains unpopular, why shouldn't San Diegans take advantage of this season's early sunsets?

Here's a guide on doing just that.

Fall sunset times in San Diego

San Diegans, enjoy what sun you can get by catching these sunrise and sunset times below!

On Sept. 22, the first day of fall, the sun set in San Diego at 6:44 p.m., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Just two days later on Sept. 24, the sunset comes two minutes earlier at 6:42 p.m.

By the first day of October, the sunset will arrive at 6:32 p.m.

By the middle of the month on Oct. 15, the sunset will be at 6:15 p.m.

Get your trick-or-treating done early on Oct. 31 (Halloween), since the sun will set at 5:58 p.m.

On Nov. 3, daylight saving time will come to an end (ushering in the start of standard time season). This is the time change where we lose an hour (remember: fall back, spring forward). So that means on Nov. 3, the sun will set at 4:55 p.m.

On Nov. 28, take advantage of the early sunset at 4:43 p.m. by lighting a few romantic candles during your Thanksgiving dinner.

The earliest sunset of fall will come the very next day on Nov. 29 at 4:42 p.m. However, that's not the shortest day of the year.

The shortest day of the year will occur on Dec. 21, when the sun will rise at 6:47 a.m. and set at 4:47 p.m. San Diegans will get exactly 10 hours of sunlight that day. That day is also known as the winter solstice, the first day of winter.

Sun-lovers, rejoice! The winter solstice also marks the day we will progressively get more sunlight and the sunset times will grow later.

For San Diegans that love going to the beach on Christmas Day (Dec. 25), catch your Yuletide sunset at 4:49 p.m.

The final sunset of 2024 will come on Dec. 31 at 4:53 p.m.

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The winter solstice: The shortest day of the year

The day of the year with the least amount of daylight is also known as the winter solstice. This year, the winter solstice occurs on Saturday, Dec. 21 at 1:20 a.m. PST, according to the Griffith Observatory.

For us Northern Hemisphere dwellers, it's also known as the first day of winter.

"On the day of the winter solstice, we are tilted as far away from the Sun as possible, which means that the Sun’s path across the sky is as low in the sky as it can be," according to the Farmer's Almanac. 

"Think about the daily path of the Sun: It rises in the east and sets in the west, arcing across the sky overhead. During the summer, the Sun arcs high in the sky, but during the winter, it arcs lower, closer to the horizon," according to the Farmer's Almanac.

During this season, the sun moves towards its most southerly point in the sky, which occurs on the day of the solstice. The day just after the winter solstice, the sun begins moving back northward towards its most northerly point, which occurs on the day of the summer solstice (the longest day of the year), according to the Farmer's Almanac.

Photo by Daniel Knighton/Getty Images