Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘solstice’

Happy to Be in the North

Posted in Holidays, Science!, tagged , , , on June 20, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Today the sun will reach its northernmost latitude. It will sit above the Tropic of Cancer, which means that today is the longest day in the northern hemisphere, and the shortest day in the southern hemisphere.

On this Summer Solstice, will you have one longest day or two? – The Weather Network

This marks the start of astronomical summer for the northern hemisphere for this year.

And in parts of Canada, we have a bit of added fun.

The entire country will experience the longest day of the year on Friday the 20th.

However, if you live anywhere from northern and eastern Ontario to the Atlantic coast, Saturday the 21st will be the exact same length as the 20th, down to the second. This includes Timmins, North Bay, Ottawa, and Bainsville in Ontario, plus everywhere to the east — all of Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Check out the rest of the article for more on the astronomy of it all, where the name comes from, and what a solargraphy is (pretty, that’s what).

I hope you enjoy the solstice, no matter where you are. And if you (like me) get two, even better!

* * *

Photo by Jacob Amson on Unsplash

Read Full Post »

The Shortest Day

Posted in Holidays, Other, tagged , , , , , , , on December 21, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Greetings, fellow space travelers! Today is the winter solstice, the Northern Hemisphere’s shortest day of the year. 

Winter solstice 2024: How to celebrate the start of winter – NPR

“At 4:20 a.m. EST, the solstice marks the beginning of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and summer in the Southern Hemisphere,” NASA says on its website.

That means from now until the end of June, each day will get a little bit longer — and brighter…

Read the full article for some fun facts on the solstice, plus a link to solstice-themed music, food and writing, including work by beloved children’s author Susan Cooper (my brother and I loved The Dark Is Rising).

Today is also the official start of winter, and the temperature is dropping like a rock in a gravity well. Stay warm, it just gets brighter from here!

* * *

I think there’s a druid in there somewhere. Photo by Dyana Wing So on Unsplash

Read Full Post »

And A Happy Solstice to You

Posted in Science!, tagged , , , , on December 21, 2022| Leave a Comment »

For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, today marks the shortest day of the year.

December Solstice

The December solstice is the moment the Sun is directly above the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere. This is the southernmost latitude it reaches during the year. After the solstice, it begins moving north again.

Today is also technically the start of winter, although the fifteen inches of snow in our front yard this past week would beg to differ.

Between that and predictions of another big storm in the offing, it’s no wonder Santa is so determined to make his annual road trip.

* * *

Photo by Tatiana Colhoun on Unsplash

Read Full Post »