Daylight Detector

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 "Daylight Detector",
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 "Daylight Detector.png",
 "Inverted Daylight Detector.png"
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A daylight detector is a block that outputs a redstone signal based on its exposure to sky light.

Using the detector inverts it, causing it instead to output a constant strong signal that weakens from exposure to sky light.

Daylight detectors can be mined by hand or with any tool, but axes are the quickest. Inverted daylight detectors cannot be collected directly; they drop a regular daylight detector. In Bedrock Edition, the inverted detector may be obtained by using pick block in Creative mode^[1], or via inventory editing or add-ons.

A daylight detector can be used to produce redstone power in proportion to the daylight cycle.

A daylight detector is 0.375 blocks high (3/8ths of a block). Daylight detectors can be moved by pistons.‌^{[Bedrock Edition only]} Water and lava flow around daylight detectors without affecting them.

Placement

To place a daylight detector, use the "Use Item/Place Block" control.

A daylight detector can be "inverted", which reverses the power levels produced by the daylight detector. To invert a daylight detector, aim at the placed daylight detector and use the "Use Item/Place Block" control.

Activation

A daylight detector activates when exposed to sufficient daylight (daylight detector mode) or when exposure to daylight is low enough (inverted daylight detector mode).

Sources of block light (torches, glowstone, etc.) cannot activate a daylight detector.

Behavior

An active daylight detector:

• powers adjacent redstone dust, including below it, and redstone comparators facing away from the daylight detector, to a power level that depends on the time of day, the weather, the detector's exposure to the sky, and the internal sky light level (see tables below)
• powers adjacent redstone repeaters facing away from the daylight detector to power level 15
• activates adjacent redstone mechanisms, including above and below, such as pistons, redstone lamps, etc.

A daylight detector has no effect on other adjacent blocks (for example, it cannot power a block the way a repeater can).

The output signal of daylight detectors in the loaded chunk is updated every 20 gametime‌^{[JE only]}/daytime‌^{[BE only]}. Block updates have no effect on daylight detectors.

In the Overworld, a daylight detector's outputted signal strength depends on the time of day, the weather, the detector's exposure to the sky, and the internal sky light level.

A non-inverted daylight detector never produces a signal in the Nether and, in Bedrock Edition, the End. In Java Edition, daylight detectors always produces a maximum signal strength of 15 from exposure to the End dimension's sky, as the End's internal sky light level never changes.

Using a daylight detector inverts it. However, the output of the inverted detector is not a simple inversion of the daylight detector's output; it uses a much simpler algorithm that depends on the internal sky light level. Specifically, it outputs a signal strength of 15 minus the current internal sky light level, where values over 15 or below 0 are taken as 15 or 0 respectively. This means that, in the Overworld, an inverted daylight detector actually outputs a strength of 11 at midnight when the weather is clear, if it has line of sight with the sky. The effects of shade are applied before inverting, so shade increases the signal strength when it is not already full, and prevents it from reaching zero. Completely blocking an inverted daylight detector from exposure to the sky causes it to emit a signal strength of 15 at all times of day.

in Java Edition, inverted daylight detectors in the Nether always produce a signal strength of 15; in the End, they work similarly to in the Overworld. in Bedrock Edition, inverted daylight detectors in the Nether or End never produce a signal under any circumstance.

The cells on inverted daylight detectors are emissive if Vibrant Visuals is enabled.

Daylight detectors can be used as a fuel in furnaces, smelting 1.5 items per block.

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

A daylight detector has a block entity associated with it which stores only its entity ID and position (the minimum data for a block entity). Although the daylight detector's block entity stores no additional data, the block entity ensures that the daylight detector is updated every game tick.

Java Edition:

Bedrock Edition:

See Bedrock Edition level format/Block entity format.

Issues relating to "Daylight Sensor" or "Daylight Detector" are maintained on the bug tracker. Issues should be reported and viewed there.

• 👁 A graph visualising the states of a Daylight Detector under different weather conditions (ends rounded to the nearest quarter of a thousand Game-ticks)
  
  A graph visualising the states of a Daylight Detector under different weather conditions (ends rounded to the nearest quarter of a thousand Game-ticks)
• 👁 An example of lights being powered upon the sunrise.
  
  An example of lights being powered upon the sunrise.
• 👁 Art made using both states of the daylight detector.
  
  Art made using both states of the daylight detector.
• 👁 One of the more common uses of the block, a simple street light using a redstone lamp.
  
  One of the more common uses of the block, a simple street light using a redstone lamp.

• 👁 First image of a daylight detector.
  
  First image of a daylight detector.
• 👁 The 13w01a snapshot image released by Mojang.
  
  The 13w01a snapshot image released by Mojang.
• 👁 Image
  

• Block of the Month: Daylight Detector – Minecraft.net on December 14, 2023