Summer Solstice Longest Day

This week on Thursday 22nd December 2022 is the Summer Solstice here in the Southern Hemisphere. I checked out the details online and the information says it will be a 14-hour day from Sunrise to Sunset. First light 4:11am, Sunrise 5:46am, Sunset 7:46am and Last light 8:13pm.

The busy time of the year, it may be the shortest night, only 10 hours long, but for the Bakers busy at the bakeries this time of the year is often the longest nights as they prepare lots of treats for Christmas which is only a few days away.

The sunsets can now be enjoyed at Kingston as the sun has reached its most South Western position for the year and the same for the very early sunrise can be seen towards the South Eastern horizon. The Summer Solstice is when the sun reaches its highest point for the year

I also read that the earliest sunrises were at the beginning of December at 5:41am. So, if you have been waking early and up with the sound of the bird’s morning chorus this month, this is the reason the bird songs have been starting long before your alarm clocks go off.

This is known at the Summer Solstice which means: 'Solstice' (Latin: 'solstitium') means 'sun-stopping'. The point on the horizon where the sun appears to rise and set stops and reverses direction after this day. The solstice is an astronomical event, caused because of the Earth’s tilt on its axis, and its motion in orbit around the sun. Because Earth doesn’t orbit upright, but is instead tilted on its axis by 23-and-a-half degrees, Earth’s Northern and Southern Hemispheres trade places in receiving the sun’s light and warmth most directly. The tilt of the Earth, not our distance from the sun, is what causes the Earth’s winters and summers. At the December solstice, the Southern Hemisphere is leaning the most towards the sun for the year and the Northern Hemisphere is leaning most away from the sun for the year.

If you are interested in reading more about Norfolk Island time and dates zone details check out

https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/norfolk-island/kingston?month=12&year=2022

or

https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/norfolk-island/kingston

Summer time is here, time to enjoy the Norfolk Island outdoors and our beautiful Emily Bay. Some will be camping in the pines, many will be enjoying BBQs at the Beach. Time to enjoy our Island Paradise

Betty Matthews

December 2022