The summer solstice, also known as the longest day of the year, is just around the corner. This year, it will occur on June 20, 2025, marking the first astronomical day of summer. With over 15 hours of daylight, it's a day to celebrate the sun's longest hours in the sky. Despite a record-breaking 13 consecutive rainy weekends in Boston, don't worry about the recent deluge of rain. According to timeanddate.com, July is the warmest month in Boston, followed by August, so warmer days are ahead. The summer solstice occurs when the earth's tilt towards the sun is at a maximum, hence the long hours of daylight. It is also when the sun appears at its highest elevation in the sky. This year, June 20 will be 15 hours, 17 minutes, and 4 seconds long, with a sunrise of 5:07 a.m. and a sunset of 8:24 p.m. in Boston. The summer solstice date changes every year because the calendar year doesn't exactly line up with the astronomical year, which is 365.25 days long. The solstice always occurs between June 20 and 22 in the Northern Hemisphere. The summer solstice has been celebrated by cultures around the world for a long time. In Sweden, it's known as midsummer and is celebrated with dancing around a Maypole and eating and drinking classic Swedish foods. Other countries like Norway, Denmark, and Ireland also celebrate midsummer. In England, thousands of people gather to watch the solstice sunrise at Stonehenge, which was built to align with the sun on this day. Other ancient structures are oriented towards the sun too, like the Mayan pyramid Kukulkan at Chichen Itza and Peru's Machu Picchu. These structures were built to align with astronomical events such as the Summer Solstice, demonstrating the ancient people's understanding of the sun's movements in the sky. So mark your calendars for June 20, 2025, and get ready to celebrate the longest day of the year with friends and family. Whether you're in Boston or anywhere else in the world, the summer solstice is a time to appreciate the sun's power and beauty.
