Summer’s here
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By Jeff Snyder
MOUNT AYR, Iowa — Although most people have been in summer mode for some time, the official first day of summer arrived last Sunday.
Astronomically this day on the calendar represents the start of the summer solstice and subsequently the longest day of the calendar year in the northern hemisphere. Summer is growing season in the Midwest with warm days and mild nights, but what actually is it and what does it mean?
The word solstice is a Latin derivative of two words: sol (sun) and sistere (stop, to be still). A solstice is defined as an event when the sun is at its highest or lowest point in the sky. This happens twice a year, and the occurrence of the summer and winter solstices marks the longest and shortest two days of the year, respectively. While solstices are sometimes confused with equinoxes, they’re not the same thing. Solstices and equinoxes share similarities, like the fact that they’re both ruled by the equator’s distance from the sun during each season. Equinox on the other hand, comes from the Medieval Latin word equinoxium, which fuses aequus (equal) with nox (night).
An equinox occurs when the sun lines up so that the equator bisects it. The occurrence gives us a day that is equal parts daytime and nighttime. This signals the beginning of spring (vernal equinox) and fall (the autumnal equinox) each year.
During an equinox, the sun is closest to the equator. In practical terms this day marks the best day to play golf after work. It stays light until after nine o’clock and gives you ample light to adjust that score card when no one is looking. Each day from this day forward, on toward December 21, the days will get shorter. Only then will the sun begin to give us hope once again.
