Summer Solstice: Summer Officially Begins Today

Today is the longest time of the year, with 14 hours and 48 minutes of daylight. Our country, located successful the Northern Hemisphere, officially welcomes summertime today.

The summertime solstice occurs today, June 21. It marks the longest time of the twelvemonth and the authoritative commencement of summertime successful the Northern Hemisphere, portion successful the Southern Hemisphere, it signals the opening of winter.

In the Northern Hemisphere—where our state is located—days volition gradually shorten, initially imperceptibly, becoming much noticeable from August onward, portion nights volition correspondingly lengthen. Conversely, successful the Southern Hemisphere, contiguous marks the archetypal time of wintertime (winter solstice).

Solstices and equinoxes, which astronomically specify the seasons, hap due to the fact that the days of the twelvemonth alteration successful length. This is owed to Earth’s orbit astir the Sun and its rotational axis, which is tilted astir 23.4 degrees. Without this tilt, seasons would not exist, days would ever past 12 hours, and the Sun would travel the aforesaid way crossed the entity each day.

Because of the axial tilt, for fractional the twelvemonth (from the outpouring equinox to the autumn equinox), the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, peaking astatine the summertime solstice betwixt June 20 and 22. For the different half, the Southern Hemisphere tilts much toward the Sun, culminating successful the wintertime solstice.

Today, sunrise occurred astatine 06:02, and sunset volition beryllium astatine 20:51. The full duration of daylight is 14 hours and 48 minutes.