Summer Solstice!

We just celebrated the summer solstice! The solstice is a big deal here since the days grow significantly longer. After the summer solstice, the days get shorter and shorter until the shortest day on the winter solstice. Then it repeats again!

So what is the summer solstice? It's when the tilt of the earth is most inclined toward the sun. This means that the day is the longest on the summer solstice. You can see this demonstrated in the diagram.

So how long is the longest day in Juneau, Alaska? Why, it's 18 hours, 16 minutes and 34 seconds! This doesn't include twilight hours, before sunrise and after sunset when there is still light out. If you include that, the day is almost 21 hours long!

So how do Juneauites celebrate the Summer Solstice? With beach bonfires, of course!

This was our beautiful view just as sunset began on Douglas Island.

And this is what the sky turned into!

My cousin, Katie and I pose for a photo during the festivities.

Here's a panoramic view of the sunset at the Juneau summer solstice.

 

These photos were taken around 10:30 at night, believe it or not! We sure had a good time! Unfortunately now each day will be getting shorter and shorter from now on. We'll just have to wait for the next summer.