![]() ![]() If you are word geeks like me, you might be fascinated to know the origins of the word Solstice. What you might notice is that when one hemisphere is having the Summer Solstice the other hemisphere is celebrating the Winter Solstice and the shortest day of the year. For most people though, they celebrate the Solstice for the entire day that it lands on each year.Īs mentioned above the Summer Solstice falls between June 20 and June 23 in the Northern Hemisphere, and between December 20 and December 23 in the Southern Hemisphere. Scientists use very precise tools to measure the exact moment of the Solstice, when the Earth is at maximum tilt and will start tilting back the other way. This axial tilt combined with the orbit of the Earth around the sun causes a little bit of variability in the exact moment of the Summer Solstice. The orbit of the Earth around the sun is not a perfect circle it is actually an elliptical orbit. The exact time of the Solstice varies a bit every year. Visual of the Seasons showing the Solstices and Equinoxes When is the Summer Solstice? With the equinoxes and solstices we have the 4 seasons of the year. ![]() We have a Spring Equinox in March and an Autumn or Fall Equinox in September. In between each of these cycles of the Earth’s tilt it hits a balance point when the Sun passes the celestial equator, we call these the Equinoxes. This tilt results in the longest day of the year for those in the North and shortest day for those in the South. This means those in the Northern Hemisphere celebrate Summer and the Southern Hemisphere celebrate Winter. In June, on the Solstice, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun as much as it can and is the furthest from the celestial equator, and the Southern Hemisphere is tilted as far away from the sun as it can be. This is why the length of the day (number of daylight hours) varies so much more the farther North or South you go from the Equator. ![]() The tilt causes different parts of the Earth to receive varying amounts of sunlight throughout the year, leading to the changing seasons. This happens because the Earth’s axis is tilted with respect to its orbit around the Sun. Visual of the Earth’s tile on Summer Solsticeĭuring the summer solstice, the Sun reaches its highest position in the sky, appearing to be at its highest point at noon. It marks the official first day of summer and is the longest day of the year (which of course means it is also the shortest night). The Summer Solstice is an astronomical event that occurs once a year, usually around June 20 – 22 in the Northern Hemisphere and around December 20 – 22 in the Southern Hemisphere. Let’s tackle the big question of the day, what is the Summer Solstice? So let’s dig in more and learn about the Summer Solstice. Growing up with such pronounced variations in our sunlight during the year, fostered a deep curiosity and fascination for me. We get over 17 hours of sunlight on the Summer Solstice and a few more hours North of here the sun doesn’t even set on the Solstice. ![]() The Summer Solstice in particular is extra special. The solstices in particular are really prominent days for us. Our winters are very, very long and cold, and our summers feel impossibly short and precious. Living so far North we really feel all the seasons here. Or visit our YouTube channel to see if the video has been uploaded there. Not seeing our videos? Turn off any adblockers to ensure our video feed can be seen. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Disclaimer: This article may contain commission or affiliate links. ![]()
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