June 21st is the longest day of the year In the Northern Hemisphere, meaning that we get the most amount of daylight in a 24 hour period. In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s the shortest day of the year.
Solstices happen twice a year in June and December. The Summer Solstice happens when the sun is directly overhead the Tropic Of Cancer. Solstice comes from the Latin words ‘sol’ meaning Sun and ‘sistere’ meaning stand still. On the longest day of the year, the UK can receive around 17 hours of daylight compared to that of just 7 hours on the Winter Solstice!
Stonehenge aligns to the solstices and is believed to be an ancient place of worship which is why it is now one of the most popular locations for Pagans and sun-worshipping Druids to gather to celebrate the summer solstice. Each year around 20,000 visitors flock to the site to witness the Summer Solstice! If you stand in the right spot within Stonehenge, you will see the sun rise above the hell stone which is just outside of the circle of stones on the North-East. Stonehenge is believed to date back to 2000 – 3000 bc and it is still unknown how the stones got there.
Now that the evenings are much longer, have you ever thought about taking a balloon flight? Take the trip of a lifetime with Bailey Balloons this Summer with prices starting from just £99 per person!
