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Solstices And
Equinoxes Affecting The Seasons
An Overview of Solstices and Equinoxes
By Matt
Rosenberg
Here's
what you need to know about the June and December solstices and the March and
September equinoxes and how they affect the seasons.
June Solstice (Approximately June 20-21)
This day begins
summer in the Northern Hemisphere and winter in the Southern Hemisphere.
This
day is the longest in the year for the Northern Hemisphere and the shortest for
the Southern Hemisphere.
· North
Pole: The
North Pole (90 degrees north latitude) receives 24 hours of daylight, as it has
been daylight at the North Pole for the last three months (since the March
Equinox). The sun is 66.5 degrees off of the zenith or 23.5 degrees above the
horizon.
· Arctic
Circle: It
is light 24 hours a day north of the Arctic Circle (66.5 degrees north) on the
June Solstice. The sun at noon is 43 off zenith.
· Tropic
of Cancer: On
the June Solstice the sun is directly overhead the Tropic of Cancer (23.5
degrees north latitude) at noon.
· Equator: At the
equator (zero degrees latitude), the day is always 12 hours long. At the
equator, the sun rises daily at 6 a.m. local time and sets at 6 p.m. local
time. The sun at noon at the equator is 23.5 degrees off the zenith.
· Tropic
of Capricorn: In
the Tropic of Capricorn, the sun is low in the sky, at 47 degrees from the
zenith (23.5 plus 23.5).
· Antarctic
Circle: At
the Antarctic Circle (66.5 degrees south), the sun makes the briefest
of appearances at noon, peeking at the horizon and then instantaneously
disappearing. All areas south of the Antarctic Circle are dark on the June
Solstice.
South Pole: By
June 21, it has been dark for three months at the South Pole (90 degrees south
latitude. The sunset at the South Pole on The September Equinox.
September Equinox (Approximately September 22-23)
This day begins to
fall in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere.
There
are twelve hours of daylight and twelve hours of darkness at all points on the
earth’s surface on the two equinoxes.
Sunrise
is at 6 a.m. and sunset is at 6 p.m. local (solar) time for most points on the
earth’s surface.
North Pole: The
sun is on the horizon at the North Pole on the September Equinox in the
morning. The sun sets at the North Pole at noon on the September Equinox and
the North Pole remains dark until the March Equinox.
· Arctic
Circle:
Experiences 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun is 66.5
degrees off of the zenith or 23.5 degrees above the horizon.
· Tropic
of Cancer: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun is 23.5 degrees off of
the zenith.
· Equator: The sun is
directly overhead the equator at noon on the equinox. On both equinoxes (which
means "equal nights" in Latin), the sun is directly over the equator
at noon.
· Tropic
of Capricorn: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun is 23.5 degrees off of
the zenith.
· Antarctic
Circle: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness.
· South
Pole: The
sun rises at the South Pole after the Pole having been dark for the past six
months (since the March Equinox). The sun rises to the horizon and it remains
light at the South Pole for six months. Each day, the sun appears to rotate
around the South Pole at the same declination angle in the sky.
December Solstice (Approximately December 21-22)
This day begins
summer in the Southern Hemisphere and is the longest day in the Southern
Hemisphere. It begins winter in the Northern Hemisphere and is the shortest day
of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
· North
Pole: At
the North Pole, it has been dark of three months (since the September Equinox).
It remains dark for another three (until the March Equinox).
· Arctic
Circle: The
sun makes the briefest of appearances at noon, peeking at the horizon and then
instantaneously disappearing. All areas north of the Arctic Circle are dark on
the June Solstice.
· Tropic
of Cancer: The
sun is low in the sky, at 47 degrees from the zenith (23.5 plus 23.5) at noon.
· Equator: The sun is
23.5 degrees from zenith at noon.
· Tropic
of Capricorn: The
sun is directly overhead the Tropic of Capricorn on the December Solstice.
· Antarctic
Circle: It
is light 24 hours a day south of the Antarctic Circle (66.5 degrees north) on
the June Solstice. The sun at noon is 47 off zenith.
· South
Pole: The
South Pole (90 degrees south latitude) receives 24 hours of daylight, as it has
been daylight at the South Pole for the last three months (since the September
Equinox). The sun is 66.5 degrees off of the zenith or 23.5 degrees above the
horizon. It will remain light at the South Pole for another three months.
March Equinox (Approximately March 20-21)
This day begins to
fall in the Southern Hemisphere and spring in the Northern Hemisphere.
There
are twelve hours of daylight and twelve hours of darkness at all points on the
earth’s surface on the two equinoxes.
Sunrise
is at 6 a.m. and sunset is at 6 p.m. local (solar) time for most points on the
earth’s surface.
· North
Pole: The
sun is on the horizon at the North Pole on the March Equinox. The sun rises at
the North Pole at noon to the horizon on the March Equinox and the North Pole
remains light until the September Equinox.
· Arctic
Circle: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun is 66.5 off zenith and
low in the sky at 23.5 degrees above the horizon.
· Tropic
of Cancer: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun is 23.5 degrees off of
the zenith.
· Equator: The sun is
directly overhead the equator at noon on the equinox. On both equinoxes, the
sun is directly over the equator at noon.
· Tropic
of Capricorn: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. The sun is 23.5 degrees off of
the zenith.
· Antarctic
Circle: Experiences
12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness.
· South
Pole: The
sun sets at the South Pole at noon after the Pole has been light for the past
six months (since the September Equinox). The day begins on the horizon in the
morning and by the end of the day, the sun has set.
Matt Rosenberg
· Award-winning professional
geographer
· Author of two books on
geography
Experience
Matt Rosenberg is a former writer for ThoughtCo.
He covered geography for ThoughtCo and About.com for over 20 years. He was an
adjunct professor of geography at California State University,
Sacramento, a city planning and GIS intern for local government, and is a
former newspaper columnist.
Rosenberg has been featured on PBS and NPR, and
he has conducted many interviews about geographical topics for television,
radio, and newspapers. He was director of emergency services for the American
Red Cross and served on more than two dozen major disaster relief operations
around the United States. He has traveled widely across North America and has
visited or studied in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. He is a member
of the Association of American Geographers and the National
Council for Geographic Education.Education
Matt Rosenberg holds a bachelor's degree in
geography from the University of California, Davis and a master's
degree in geography from California State University,
Northridge. Publications
· "The Handy Geography Answer Book"
(Barnes & Noble, 2004)
· "The Geography Bee Complete Preparation
Handbook" (Three Rivers Press, 2002) Awards
· Excellence in Media Award,
National Council for Geographic Education, October 2006ThoughtCo and
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