Summer Solstice — Here’s why June 21 is going to be the longest day of the year in India

• The Summer Solstice will occur at 3:14 am on June 21 in India.
  
• It’s the longest day of the year when the Sun is directly overhead the Tropic of Cancer.
  
• In India, the Summer Solstice will last for 13 hours and 58 minutes.
  

The June solstice, or the Summer Solstice, is the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere — including India. It traditionally marks the beginning of summer when early dawns kick in, the sunsets are a little later and the nights are short.

This year, the Summer Solstice is more special than others with the annular solar eclipse set to occur on June 21 as well — along with International Yoga Day and Music Day as well.

While the Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s also the shortest day of the year in the Southern Hemisphere. So countries for like Australia and South Africa it marks the beginning of winter.

Summer solstice 2020 time
In the Northern Hemisphere, the Summer Solstice is also called the June Solstice. It normally occurs between June 20 and June 22. In India, the Summer Solstice will kick off at 3:14 am on June 21 this year. The day will last as long at 13 hours and 58 minutes.

Similarly, in the Southern Hemisphere, the Summer Solstice occurs in December. It usually falls between December 20 and December 23 — right before Christmas.

In temperate regions, like Europe, the Summer Solstice doesn’t mark the beginning of summer but the middle of summer — referred to as ‘midsummer’.

What is the Summer Solstice?
The Earth isn’t upright, instead, it faces the Sun at an angle of 23.5 degrees. This tilt is how the planet gets its seasons.

During the Summer Solstice, the Earth is positioned in such a way that the North Pole is as close to the Sun as it can be — leaving it directly overhead the Tropic of Cancer. It because of this season that it happens at the same time for everyone around the world. In Latin, solstice means “Sun stands still.”

The solstice is also when countries in the Northern Hemisphere get the most hours of sunlight in the whole year.

It’s not the hottest day of the year
The Summer Solstice may be the longest day of the year with the most hours of sunlight, but it’s not necessarily the hottest day of the year.

The hottest days are usually in July and August. This is because temperatures aren’t solely dictated by the hours of sunlight, but also by the Earth’s oceans and its atmosphere.

So while the planet absorbs a lot of sunlight during the Summer Solstice, it takes several weeks to release it back into the air.

SEE ALSO:
The June solstice is almost here - here's how it works and why it starts both summer and winter

Today is the summer solstice - here are 5 cool things to know about it

Sunsets don't happen later during the summer - here's why it's so confusing