Interesting information on Summer vs Winter Solstice
Posted By RichC on June 21, 2022
On Tuesday’s solstice, everywhere north of the equator will receive at least 12 hours of daylight and everywhere south of that point will get less than 12 hours. The continental U.S. will get 14 to 16 hours of daylight, compared with eight to 10 hours on the winter solstice.
“All the planets orbit the sun in a plane—think of it like a tire that’s going around the sun—but Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees with respect to that tire,” Dr. Jackie Faherty said. The tilt gives Earth its seasons, causing different parts of the planet to receive more or less sunlight.
The Northern Hemisphere’s summer solstice marks the moment when Earth’s tilt brings the North Pole closest to the sun, and northernmost parts of the Arctic get 24 hours of daylight. At that same moment, the South Pole is farthest from the sun, and parts of the Antarctic are in darkness for nearly the full day.
After that point, days in the Northern Hemisphere begin to shorten, and continue to do so until the winter solstice in December, which marks the shortest period of daylight and longest period of darkness there.
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