Happy solstice-eve everybody!

[Lionel Mandrake]

Tomorrow will be the longest day of the year (for those of us in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere), but today is almost as long. (By "day" I mean the interval from sunrise to sunset, not the 24-hour period which is also called a "day".) For those at mid-latitudes in the southern hemisphere, it's the shortest day. Our summer solstice is their winter solstice, and vice versa.

The sun will rise at 23.4 degrees north of east, and sunset will be at 23.4 degrees north of west. Hey, that's almost the title of a Hitchcock movie. (Actually sunset is roughly West by Northwest.)

For those at very high latitude there will be no sunrise or sunset today or tomorrow. But it will still be the "solstice" in the original sense of the word: that the sun is as far north in the sky as it will get this year. This can be observed by those above the arctic circle, but not by those who are wintering over in Antarctica (brr....).

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. So tomorrow will be the longest day of the year!

The most daylight hours for the entire year.

And since I love the sun and the blue sky, this makes me foolishly happy!



Thank you for this bit of information, my dear Lionel Mandrake!

[Lionel Mandrake]

6. You're forgetting about the June gloom.

But we'll probably have at least a few sunny days.

[Lionel Mandrake]

2. Oops, what I said about sunrise and sunset is only true at the equator.

What I should have said is that if you see a sunrise (or sunset) tomorrow, it will be farther north of east (or west) than on any other day of the year. The angle north of east (or west) varies from 23.4 degrees (for observers on the equator) to 0 degrees (for observers on the arctic or antarctic circle, give or take a degree of latitude to account for atmospheric refraction -- but that's probably too much information for most readers).

[petronius]

4. Shouldn't it be 90 degrees north of east or west for people on the Arctic Circle?

IOW, at 66.5 N the center of the solar disk will just touch the horizon at due north on the June Solstice (ignoring atmosphere)...

[Lionel Mandrake]

7. You're right.

Once again, what I said was wrong. Let me try again.

The azimuth of the sun at rise (or set) tomorrow will vary from of 23.4 degrees north of east (or west) at the equator to due north on the arctic or antarctic circle. At some intermediate latitude the azimuth at sunset will agree exactly with the title of that Hitchcock movie.

[MrMickeysMom]

3. Happy Summer Solstice to you, too!

[In_The_Wind]

5. Except, we'll be celebrating with liquid sunshine.

[Lionel Mandrake]

8. Ubiquitous metaphors: sun and rain in music

For example:

(along with a quotation of James Bond theme music).

[In_The_Wind]

11. Nice.

[MrMickeysMom]

9. Ah, we will, too...

But, we're gonna ride like the wind anyway…

[In_The_Wind]

12. Yup!

[img][/img]

[ailsagirl]

15. My, that's a pretty blue gif

[bvar22]

10. YAY!!!!

......Naked Dancing around the bonfire in the garden at midnight!

[niyad]

13. a blessed solstice to you, as well.

[Lionel Mandrake]

16. Thank you.

That's very kind of you.

[ailsagirl]

14. Yes, Happy Solstice, everyone!!

Last edited Sat Jun 20, 2015, 10:32 PM - Edit history (3)

It means that days will start getting shorter which, to me, means Autumn is close behind.

Of course, there's still summer in California to get through first...



William Shakespeare clearly had astronomy on his mind when he chose the title A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a tale of enchantment that takes place on midsummer’s eve, or, as we commonly refer to it, the summer solstice. Shakespeare is also credited with the first-known citation of the phrase “midsummer madness,” a line uttered by Olivia in Twelfth Night after encountering a cross-gartered Malvolio. This seasonal transition was thought to be a time when witches and other supernatural beings caused widespread mischief. Additionally, some plants were thought to possess magical healing powers and bonfires were thought to ward off malicious spirits. Midsummer’s Eve is a national holiday in Sweden and Finland.

http://blog.dictionary.com/summer-solstice/

[Lionel Mandrake]

17. It seems strange that the solstice is/was called midsummer.

Here it is considered the first day of summer.

About Shakespeare and witches: I doubt that Shakespeare believed all that nonsense, but he knew better than to oppose James I on this. James was a true believer and author of a book about how to hunt down witches.

[ailsagirl]

18. I was interested to learn the reason bonfires were lit

Makes sense that people thought they'd chase away the "bad spirits"

I didn't know that James I wrote a book about hunting down witches. Interesting.

Thanks for the info

[Lionel Mandrake]

19. You're welcome.

The book is Daemonologie (1599). It starts as follows:

The fearefull aboundinge at this time in this countrie, of these detestable slaves of the Devil, the Witches or enchaunters, hath moved me (beloved reader) to dispatch in post, this following treatise of mine (...) to resolve the doubting (...) both that such assaults of Satan are most certainly practised, and that the instrument thereof merits most severely to be punished.

[betsuni]

20. A Midsummer's Night Dream ballet (Balanchine choreography)

I welcome the solstice -- the more darkness the better, from now the sun goes back to where it belongs earlier every day.