Summer Solstice and the Lunar Standstill
On Thursday night, at 21:50, we celebrate the Summer Solstice. the time of year which celebrates the first astronomical day of the Summer season in the Northern Hemisphere. This means that tomorrow marks the longest day of the year and also the shortest night, measured in terms of daylight. https://www.umass.edu/sunwheel/pages/moonteaching.html The Solstice marks a point in the year when the Sun is at its northernmost point. This point is an abstract one, on the celestial Tropic of Cancer (the Tropic of Cancer projected out into space), a parallel 23.5 degree north of the celestial equator (the equator projected out into space). At this solstice, as opposed to the Winter Solstice, the Northern Hemisphere is most tilted towards the Sun by a maximum angle of 23.5 degrees. The Ancient ones knew about this day and gave it the utmost importance. They tracked the Sun's path across the sky and the length of daylight hours. Scientifically, the summer solstice represents...