McDonald's in Lights

This is the largest metropolitan McDonald's restaurant in America, located at 42nd Street in the Theatre district. The 17,500-square-foot McDonald's restaurant is housed in the landmark Candler building. It features a full-length theatre marquee with 7,500 light bulbs.

42nd Street and Broadway

This is 42nd Street, a major crosstown street in Manhattan known for its theaters, especially near the intersection with Broadway in Times Square. Times Square the only zone in the city where tenants are required by a zoning ordinance to display bright signs on the outside of their buildings. 

Red, White and Blue

This is an old apartment building in Manhattan's midtown west side located at 42nd Street between Eight and Ninth Avenues. The facade of the brick building just above Kaufman, one of the oldest army-surplus store in the country is painted red, white and blue. 

Manhattanhenge 2012 at 42nd Street

Yesterday was full sun Manhattanhenge, when the sun set in full alignment with the Manhattan street grid. Manhattanhenge derived its name from Stonehenge, the million years old rocks in South England, where sun aligns according to the tall standing stones. It was a little cloudy yesterday making the sunset underwhelming. The photos of the sunset and the many enthusiasts, watchers and photographers of Manhattanhenge were taken at 42nd Street. Many photographers and watchers gathered on the Pershing Square (Park Avenue) Viaduct. The top photo was taken from last year. The next half-sun Manhattanhenge will be on July 12 (8:25 PM) while the full sun on the grid will take place again on July 11 (8:24) PM according to astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson.

New York Rangers Fans (Blueshirts United)

Citysights tourist buses carrying enthusiastic New York Rangers fans rolled down 42nd Street in Times Square last Saturday, sharing their passion for Rangers hockey and Rangers towels. The fans are members of Blueshirts United, a fan group dedicated to celebrating the New York Rangers hockey team. The New York Rangers eliminated Ottawa with 2-1 victory and moves on to an Eastern Conference second-round matchup with the Washington Capitals.

Subway FASTRACK: A/C/E Halted 10 PM-5 AM This Week For Maintenance

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is currently on its fourth section of overnight Fastrack work, this time completely stopping service on major sections of the A/C/E lines from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. The A, C and E trains will be completely suspended in both directions from Columbus Circle in Manhattan to Jay Street/MetroTech in Brooklyn for four consecutive weeknights. Regular overnight service will resume Friday morning at 5 a.m. The trains will run alternate routes, including the A train on the D line between 59th Street/Columbus Circle and 47th/50th Streets stations and then on the F line to Jay Street in Brooklyn. The overnight closures allow MTA workers to complete a significant number of maintenance projects without stopping for trains on the tracks or people in the stations. The next Fastrack overnight closure will return to the 1/2/3 lines from 34th Street-Penn Station to Atlantic Avenue for four nights beginning Monday, April 9. In addition, JFK Airport’s AirTrain will suspend most of its route overnights starting tonight from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. due to terminal construction. At nights, AirTrain JFK will operate only between Jamaica Station and Federal Circle Station with free shuttle buses replacing the rest of the route. The AirTrain disruption will continue through May 11. 

The photo above was taken at 42nd Street.

Manhattanhenge At 42nd Street, May 30 and 31, 2011

Full-sun Manhattanhenge, May 31, 2011

Full-sun Manhattanhenge, May 31, 2011

Full-sun Manhattanhenge, May 31, 2011

Full-sun Manhattanhenge, May 31, 2011

Half-sun Manhattanhenge, May 30, 2011

Half-sun Manhattanhenge, May 30, 2011

Half-sun Manhattanhenge, May 30, 2011

Four times a year, the sun sets in perfect alignment with the east-west streets of the primary sections of New York City's Manhattan street grid. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, the Director of the Hayden Planetarium of the American Museum of Natural History named the urban phenomenon MANHATTANHENGE, Manhattan's version of Stonehenge. These images were taken yeserday at 42nd Street near Broadway. 

From the Hayden Planetarium website:

Tyson, (who also tweets,) explains Manhattanhenge on his website: As you may know, had Manhattan’s grid been perfectly aligned with the geographic north-south line, then the days of Manhattanhenge would be the spring and autumn equinoxes, the only two days on the calendar when the Sun rises due-east and sets due-west. But Manhattan’s street grid is rotated 30 degrees east from geographic north, shifting the days of alignment elsewhere into the calendar.

Note that any city crossed by a rectangular grid can identify days where the setting Sun aligns with their streets. But a closer look at such cities around the world shows them to be less than ideal for this purpose. Beyond the grid you need a clear view to the horizon, as we have over New Jersey. And tall buildings that line the streets create a kind of brick and steel channel to frame the setting Sun, creating a striking photographic opportunity. What will future civilizations think of Manhattan Island when they dig it up and find a carefully laid out network of streets and avenues? Surely the grid would be presumed to have astronomical significance, just as we have found for the pre-historic circle of large vertical rocks known as Stonehenge, in the Salisbury Plain of England. For Stonehenge, the special day is the summer solstice, when the Sun rises in perfect alignment with several of the stones, signaling the change of season.