All your should know: Summer Solstice 2022, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere
On Tuesday, June 21, 2022, the world will see the Summer Solstice 2022. The summer solstice, also known as the June solstice, is the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere and the shortest in the Southern. The day also signals the beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere and winter in the Southern Hemisphere.
Every year, the summer solstice happens twice: first on June 20 or 21 and again on December 21 or 22. The occasion marks the northernmost sky in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of winter in the Southern Hemisphere.
Every year, the summer solstice happens twice: first on June 20 or 21 and again on December 21 or 22. The occasion celebrates the sky reaching its northernmost point in the Northern Hemisphere in June and its southernmost point in the Southern Hemisphere in December. The term'solstice' is derived from the Latin words'sol' and'sistere,' which signify sun and stillness, respectively. The summer solstice will occur on June 21, 2022, at 9:14am UTC.
Fascinating facts:
1. Ancient cultures understood that the sun's passage through the sky, the length of daylight, and the location of sunrise and sunset all shifted in a predictable pattern throughout the year. People also created monuments, such as Stonehenge in England, to track the sun's annual travel, worship it, and anticipate its movements.
2. During the June solstice, the north pole is tipped more directly toward the sun than at any other time of the year, and the south pole is turned more directly away from the sun. As a result, all sites north of the equator have days that are longer than 12 hours, while all locations south experience days that are shorter than 12 hours.
3. A few thousand years ago, the solstice occurred when the sun was in the constellation of Cancer (Latin for crab), which is how the Tropic of Cancer was named, as on the June solstice, the sun reaches its northernmost position, reaches the Tropic of Cancer, and stands still before reversing direction and moving south again.
4. On the summer solstice, the sun's path across the sky is curved, NOT straight.
5. As the sun rises farthest left on the horizon and sets farthest right on the day of the summer solstice, it illuminates regions in your home that are illuminated at no other time.
6. The summer solstice date varies between June 20, 21, and 22 based on Earth's current orbit and is not fixed because it is determined by the mechanics of our solar system rather than the human calendar.
7. The summer solstice is also known as Midsummer or the First Day of Summer by Wiccans and other Neopagan groups, while some Christian churches observe it as St John's Day to celebrate the birth of John the Baptist.
8. It was thought that the Vikings hung dead human and animal bodies from trees as an offering to the gods in order to practice ritual human sacrifice, particularly during the solstice.
9. According to pagan tradition, individuals would wear protective garlands of herbs and flowers such as "chasing devil," now known as St John's Wort, to ward off evil spirits supposed to arrive on the summer solstice.
10. Iceland is the only spot outside of the Arctic Circle where we may see the sun "not set," as the light dips all the way down to the horizon, brushes the water, and then begins to rise again if one physically watches the sun from the top of a cliff overlooking the sea.
11. The north pole is pointed squarely toward the sun at the June solstice, causing the day in the Southern Hemisphere to be shorter. The sun reaches its northernmost point at the Tropic of Cancer, then reverses direction to the south. The sun continues its journey south, reaching its southernmost point in late December. As a result, the day of the June solstice is longer than
12 hours in the Northern Hemisphere but shorter than 12 hours in the Southern Hemisphere.
According to experts, the Tropic of Cancer became the name of the line of latitude since the solstice used to occur when the sun's position fell in the constellation of cancer thousands of years ago. Every year, several Northern Hemisphere countries, including Sweden, Finland, Norway, Spain, the United States, and others, celebrate the June solstice as a holiday. The Midsummer First Day of Summer is another name for the first summer solstice of the year. The summer solstice is also known as St. John's Day in several Christian denominations, celebrating the birth anniversary of John the Baptist.
What exactly is the summer solstice?
The solstice happens "when Earth comes at the point in its orbit where the North Pole is at its maximum tilt" toward the sun, or around 23.5 degrees, which translates to "the longest day and shortest night" of the year, according to the Farmer's Almanac. (When we say "longest day," we mean the longest duration of daylight hours.) The Northern Hemisphere receives sunlight at its greatest direct angle of the year on the day of the June solstice."
The solstice does not always occur on the same day. It will be on June 21 again in 2023, but on June 22 in 2024 and 2025.
The June solstice has a distinct meaning in the southern hemisphere, where it is the shortest day of the year and the start of winter.
How much sunlight will we get?
The amount of sunlight you will receive is determined by where you live.
You can calculate it for your city by going to TimeAndDate.com, entering your location, and then clicking on Sun & Moon. The more sun there is, the further north you go. Minneapolis and Seattle get 15 hours and 59 minutes of sunlight. 15 hours and 17 minutes from Boston. 14 hours and 47 minutes to San Francisco. 14 hours and 26 minutes in Los Angeles. You have 14 hours and 19 minutes, Dallas. 13 hours 45 minutes to Miami.
Let's not forget about the Land of the Midnight Sun. Anchorage, Alaska, receives 19 hours and 21 minutes of daylight. Fairbanks, on the other hand, gets a staggering 21 hours and 49 minutes. And, at the highest top of the state, in Utqiavik, Alaska, the sun shines continuously. It's worth visiting their Farmer's Almanac page just to see that.
Celebrating the Winter Solstice
Some countries and civilizations make a big deal out of the solstice. Sweden celebrates Midsummer on a June Friday, meaning the solstice will be on June 24 rather than June 21. Folk dancing, wreath crafting, and maypole raising are among the traditional festivities there. (You may have also watched the 2019 horror film Midsommar, which describes a fictitious and terrifying midsummer celebration.)
After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, Seattle's famous Solstice Parade and Fair returned to the city's Fremont neighborhood. That event, held on June 18, featured the festival's customary naked bicyclist ride (cyclists wear elaborate body paint).
After a two-year hiatus, celebrations resumed to England's renowned Stonehenge. People assemble to the famous stone formations in the same way that their forefathers did thousands of years ago. According to the British Museum, the massive stones of the monument were erected about 2500 BC to frame the dawn at the summer solstice and the sunset at the winter solstice.
Tuesday is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, marking the longest day of the year and the start of the new season.
According to the National Weather Service, the event will begin at 5:13 a.m. on the East Coast of the United States.
According to the agency, a solstice happens when "Earth gets at the point in its orbit where the North Pole is at its maximum tilt [approximately 23.5 degrees] toward the Sun, resulting in the longest day and shortest night of the calendar year."
The sun is at its highest point—over the Tropic of Cancer—during the solstice, and there are the most hours of daylight and the fewest hours of darkness of the year.
Every June and December, the solstices occur at the same time around the world, marking the year's longest and shortest days.
Tuesday is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, but it is the shortest in the Southern Hemisphere. While summer officially begins in the Northern Hemisphere, winter begins in countries south of the Equator, including Australia and Brazil.
