The Summer Solstice is an annual celebration. It falls on 21st June this year and next year, on 20th June in 2016, and reverts back to the 21st in 2017. Summer Solstice is recognized as being the longest day of the year and is sometimes referred to as the Midsummer Litha.
The sun does not set on the day of the Summer Solstice at the North Pole; instead, there are a full 24 hours of sunlight. This is the rather happier flip side to that cold December day where the sun is notable for totally failing to put in any kind of appearance.
The word ‘solstice’ originates from the Latin term ‘solstitium’, which literally means ‘sun standing still’. The sun really does seem to stand still for Alaskans at this time, rising and setting in an almost identical place for several days around the solstice.
The hours of daylight in a 24-hour period will reduce in number for around six months after the Summer Solstice. The solstice is also known as being the start of summer in meteorological terms, which means that after the Summer Solstice is the best time to enjoy great weather, baseball games, vacations, pools, and all the other things associated with the summer season. Grab your favorite cool drink and enjoy this time, as summer never seems to last long enough as far as most of us are concerned.
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