Summer and Winter Solstice and Equinoxes

Summer Solstice:

·         On June 21, the earth is so located in its orbit that the sun is overhead on the Tropic of Cancer (23½°N).

·         On this date the northern hemisphere is tipped towards the sun having the longest day, while the southern hemisphere is tipped away from the sun having the shortest day.

Winter Solstice:

·         On December 22, the earth is in an equivalent position on the opposite points in its orbit, so the southern hemisphere is tipped towards the sun and the northern hemisphere away from it.

·      The sun is overhead on the Tropic of Capricorn (23½°S), resulting in the shortest day in the northern hemisphere.

Equinoxes:

·         Two days in a year when day and night are equal throughout the world are equinoxes.

·         Falling midway between the dates of soistices, on these dates, the earth’s axis lies at 90° to the line joining the centres of the earth and the sun and neither the northern nor the southern hemisphere is inclined towards the sun.

·         The ‘vernal equinox’ occurs on March 21 and it is also called the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere.

·         The ‘autumnal equinox’ occurs on September 23.