Editor’s note: The video in the player above is from a previous report.
The summer solstice of 2024 is just around the corner. This year’s summer solstice will be the earliest in over 200 years.
What does that mean, and why so early this year?
Following this historic moment, another spectacular sight will unfold in the sky.
Here’s what you can expect:
When is the summer solstice?
According to timeanddate.com, in Chicago the summer solstice occurs on June 20th at approximately 3:50pm CST.
During that time, the Chicago area will experience its longest day of the year, with approximately 15 hours, 13 minutes and 41 seconds of daylight. According to timeanddate.com, this will be the longest day of the year so far.
What is the summer solstice? Is it the first day of summer?
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the summer solstice is when the sun is highest and most northerly in the sky, marking the astronomical first day of summer.
In the Northern Hemisphere, this day is also known as the longest day of the year, or the longest day of the year.
The winter solstice does not occur at the same time every year, but it usually occurs between June 20th and 22nd.
“Ssolstices occur because the Earth’s axis is slightly tilted relative to the plane of its orbit,” the Adler Observatory blog explains. “This tilt is about 23.5 degrees from vertical. As a result, one half of the Earth moves slightly closer to or slightly further from the Sun as it orbits the Sun each year.”
As the summer solstice approaches, the hours of daylight get longer each day and the nights get shorter. After the summer solstice, the hours of daylight gradually get shorter each day until the winter solstice, which this year is on December 21st.
“The summer solstice occurs in the Northern Hemisphere when the northern half of the Earth is closest to the sun for the entire year,” Adler said, “and conversely, in the Southern Hemisphere, the winter solstice occurs when the southern half of the Earth is farthest from the sun.”
Why is the summer solstice so early this year?
According to Accuweather, this year’s summer solstice is the earliest in 228 years, and the last time the solstice occurred this early was on June 20, 1796.
“The exact date and time of the summer solstice varies slightly from year to year,” the magazine reports.
The Weather Network called the 2024 change “exceptional” and noted that the earlier solstice may also have something to do with it being a leap year.
“Our calendar is still slightly out of sync with the solar year. As a result, the spring equinox of each leap year falls approximately 40 to 50 minutes earlier than the spring equinox of the previous leap year,” the network reported.
Also of note is the fact that the Vernal Equinox fell on March 19th, only the second time in over a century that it fell on this date, and the earliest in 128 years.
“Even taking into account that daylight saving time wasn’t in effect at the time, the summer solstice in 2024 will still be early,” The Weather Network reported.
And autumn and winter will follow suit, with the autumn equinox likely to be the earliest since 1797 and the winter solstice the earliest since 1798.
According to the Weather Network, the spring equinoxes and summer solstices will “occur earlier” with each leap year from 2024 onwards.
Why is it called the summer solstice?
According to Adler, the word solstice “means the stopping of the arc of the sun, or sol, in the sky.”
The word comes from the Latin solstitium, a combination of sol, meaning sun, and stitium, meaning “still, stopped,” according to the Almanac.
Summer solstice sunrise and sunset
The summer solstice marks the day with the most sunlight, but not the earliest sunrise or latest sunset.
According to timeanddate.com, the latest sunset of the year occurs in mid-to-late June, when the sun sets around 8:30 pm. The city experiences more than 15 hours of daylight most months, but the hours of daylight begin to decrease after the summer solstice on June 20.
Fortunately, the website says that in this area, the sun will still be able to go down after 8pm until August 8th.
The best place to watch the summer solstice sunrise
If you’re planning on seeing the sunrise that day but aren’t sure where to go, we have good news for you: you don’t have to go far at all.
California-based photo book company Mixbook surveyed 3,000 respondents to identify the 150 best places in the U.S. to watch the sunrise on June 20. Chicago’s top spots made the top 50.
Coming in at No. 33 on the list is one of the city’s most popular beaches, the famous North Avenue Beach along Dassable Lake Shore Drive in Lincoln Park.
According to the rankings page, North Avenue Beach “offers beautiful views of the sunrise over Lake Michigan” and a “striking juxtaposition of natural beauty with the urban skyline.”
For those wondering the best places to watch the sunrise across the country, here are the top ten.
- Lake Tahoe, Nevada
- Arches National Park, Utah
- Grand Canyon National Park (Arizona)
- Stone Mountain Park, Georgia
- Key West, Florida
- Everglades National Park, Florida
- Adirondack Mountains, New York
- Sedona, Arizona
- Maroon Bells, Colorado
- Cannon Beach, Oregon
Strawberry Moon after the Summer Solstice
Just after the summer solstice comes June’s full moon, also known as the “Strawberry Moon,” which will also be a historic sight.
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the full moon will reach its peak brightness at 8:08 p.m. CST.
“Because the June 2024 full moon will occur on the summer solstice, meaning the sun is at its highest point of the year, this month’s full moon on the 21st will be the lowest full moon ever — in fact, the lowest full moon in years,” the Almanac reports. “And look! Because the moon is so low, it appears bigger than ever. This is called the ‘Lunar Illusion.'”
