The point at which the curves of the figure eight intersect is the equinox, which is when day and night are roughly equal in length. If you were to map the sun's midday position every day for a year, it would make a lopsided figure eight, called an analemma. In the weeks before these solstice turning points, the sun appears to move very little, earning it the name 'sun standstill.' Once the sun reaches its zenith at the summer solstice, it will begin its journey toward the horizon, culminating in the winter solstice at its lowest point. These correspond to midsummer and midwinter respectively, which are the turning points in the sun's journey. Around the solstices, the sun reaches its apparent highest and lowest point in the sky. While the sun always rises in the east and sets in the west, it appears higher or lower in the sky throughout the year, depending on the season. The word solstice is derived from the Latin word solstitium which translates to 'sun stands still.' This is due to the apparent movement of the sun to the north or south stops before changing direction, according to. This means the exact moment of summer solstice can occur in the middle of the night for some people and the middle of the day for others. The summer solstice does, however, occur at the same time for every country independently of which side of Earth is facing the sun. As such, the summer solstice for the Northern Hemisphere - also known as the June solstice - currently shifts between June 20, 21 and 22. The solstices also do not land on the same calendar day every year because the astronomical year is 365.25 days long. When the Northern or Southern Hemisphere is most tilted towards the sun, it experiences the summer solstice when it is most tilted away, it experiences the winter solstice. During the other half of the year, the Southern Hemisphere tilts towards it. This means that as Earth orbits the sun, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun during one half of the year. We have Earth's tilt to thank for the seasons, and without it both hemispheres would receive equal light throughout the year.Īs Earth orbits the sun, the axis of rotation of Earth is slightly tilted at 23.44°.1 according to the Royal Museums Greenwich. (Image credit: Peter Hermes Furian/Shutterstock) During the June solstice, the Arctic Circle receives 24 hours of daylight and but during the December solstice, the Arctic Circle receives 24 hours of darkness. Hours of daylight and darkness for comparison. This infographic shows Earth during the June solstice and the December solstice. It is that time of the year that the sun, having spent the previous six months plodding steadily northward has reached the pinnacle of its migration. In northern Scandinavia, above the Arctic Circle, the phenomenon of the midnight sun at solstice time is a seasonal clock that seems to divide summer, if not the entire year into two distinct parts. At night, fires are lit in the mountains in other parts of Europe. But for other parts of the world, the solstice is looked upon not as the start of summer, but rather as midsummer. If, for example, you were to pay a visit to Sweden or Norway at this time of year, you would find the local inhabitants celebrating a local holiday known as Midsummer's Day, which by ancient custom falls on June 24, a day also linked with the name of St. Is summer solstice the first day of summer?įor most of the world, this is true. And for those who are north of the Arctic Circle (66.5 degrees north) the sun remains above the horizon for 24 hours. At temperate or mid-northern latitudes (approximately 40 degrees north) the length of daylight lasts about 15 hours. At the equator, the time from sunrise to sunset is about 12 hours.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the length of daylight varies depending on the latitude.

How many hours of daylight do we get on the summer solstice? When does the summer solstice occur?ĭuring the 21st century, the dates for the occurrence of the solstice can fall either on June 20th or 21st.

A motion that will continue for six months until the sun drops to its lowest point below the equator and then stop - another solstice point - marking the beginning of winter. At the moment of the solstice, that motion stops and then the sun will begin to move south. The word solstice literally means 'sun standing still.' It is derived from combining the Latin words sol for 'sun' and sistere for “To Stand Still”.įor the previous six months, the sun has appeared to migrate on a northerly course in the sky. This point on the Earth is known as the Tropic of Cancer. It marks that moment when the sun reaches that point when it is positioned farthest north - 23.5 degrees from the celestial equator. Joe Rao is 's skywatching columnist, as well as a veteran meteorologist and eclipse chaser who also serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium.

Summer equinox meaning