UPDATE: Sunday, May 25, 2025
The "unofficial" start of the Summer Season in the USA is right now at the end
of May, the Memorial Day holiday long weekend.
Note: Officially, Summer season begins with the solstice on Friday, June 20, 2025,
marking the astronomical first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere.
The June solstice marks the official beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere,
occurring when Earth arrives at the point in its orbit where the North Pole is at its
maximum tilt (about 23.5 degrees) toward the Sun, resulting in the longest day and
shortest night of the calendar year.
In the Southern Hemisphere, it's the opposite: the June solstice marks the astronomical
start of winter when the Sun is at its lowest point in the sky... the June solstice results in
the shortest day of the year.
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Here in the far North in Alaska where I live, the days are now getting very long,
up to 22 hours of the Sun above the horizon .... and the nights become very short, no more
than 2 hours of the Sun below the horizon.
It never really gets dark, just dusk or twilight as the Sun just barely dips below the
horizon and shortly rises again.
I love the change of seasons and I especially like the long summer days that allow for many
hours of outside activities and then the long winter nights provide a spectacular and bright
view of the stars and the frequent colorful and brilliant displays of the Aurora Borealis
(also known as the Northern Lights) which are very high overhead in the sky.
I am several miles from a very small town so light pollution is not a factor.
HUGS, Danielle [Northern Star Girl]
