This year, the Sun rose 48 hours ahead of its projected date. Around 1pm, the first rays appeared on the horizon. The occurrence left everyone baffled, scientists included. But no, this doesn't mean that Earth's inclination has changed or that we are off our orbit or that the Sun has changed its position.
The only explanation, according to Thomas Posch, of the Institute for Astronomy of the University of Vienna, is a local change of the horizon: Since the ice levels are sinking, so does the horizon. The Sun's rays—coming at a very low angle because of Earth's inclination—don't get blocked by a mass of ice to the East and they can reach areas that were covered in shadow, illuminating them directly."
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