What is Solstice?

Solstice

About Solstice

What is Solstice?

The Earth receives different amount of sunlight depending on the region and the time of the year. The Earth’s tilt makes one half of the world receive sunlight while the other half stays dark. The Earth’s axis tilts at 23.5 degrees because of which, one half of the world receives more sunlight and, hence, has a longer day time while the other half has a longer night.


When the tilt of the Earth is the most extreme with respect to the sun, one hemisphere has its longest day while the other hemisphere has the longest night. This phenomenon happens twice a year and it is known as solstice.

Why does Solstice occur?

Solstice takes place because of the Earth’s tilt. The Earth’s tilt makes sure that we have four different seasons. The sun-facing hemisphere experiences summer — June to August in the Northern hemisphere and December to February in the Southern hemisphere. The hemisphere that is away from the sun experiences winter.
During summer solstice in the Northern hemisphere, parts of the Arctic Circle experience 24 hours of daylight while in the Antarctic region, which is in the Southern hemisphere, there is no sunlight at all. The opposite takes place during winter solstice. The Arctic Circle gets no sunlight while the Antarctic belt gets sunlight for 24 hours.

When does Solstice occur?

Solstices occur twice a year. They mark the beginning of astronomical summer and winter. Solstices take place around June 21 and December 21. They do not occur on the same day every year because the astronomical year is 365.25 days long and we consider 365 or 366 days. Because of this reason, solstices can shift.
Solstices have been known to people for many centuries. They have inspired religious traditions throughout the world and many monuments have been built to mark the event.

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