Rock and Roll Saved My Soul

1) Why do we have a summer solstice, anyway? Okay, most people know this one. Earth orbits around the sun on a tilted axis. (Probably because our planet collided with some other massive object billions of years ago, back when it was still being formed.) So between March and September, Earth’s Northern Hemisphere gets more exposure to direct sunlight over the course of a day. The rest of the year, the Southern Hemisphere gets more. It’s why we have seasons. In the Northern Hemisphere, “peak” sunlight usually occurs on June 20, 21, or 22 of any given year. That’s the summer solstice. By contrast, the Southern Hemisphere reaches peak sunlight on December 21, 22, or 23 and the Northern hits peak darkness — that’s our winter solstice. 2) How many hours of sunlight will I get on the 21st? That depends on where you live. The farther north you are, the more sunlight you’ll see during the solstice. Alaska-based climatologist Brian Brettschneider created this terrific gui...

What is the summer solstice? There are two solstices each year - one in the winter and one in the summer. The summer solstice occurs when the when the tilt of Earth's axis is most inclined towards the sun and is directly above the Tropic of Cancer. Traditionally, the summer solstice period fell between the planting and harvesting of crops, leaving people who worked the land time to relax. This is why June became the traditional month for weddings. It might seem like a day to celebrate, but it actually signals the moment the sun's path stops moving northward in the sky, and the start of days becoming steadily shorter as the slow march towards winter begins.  Summer Solstice traditions: Why is Stonehenge so significant? Stonehenge in Avebury, Wiltshire is the most popular place for Pagans to celebrate the longest day because it famously aligns to the solstices. The rising sun only reaches the middle of the stones one day of the year when it shines on...