How it works
Sixty-seven questions for the longest day of the year, in five rounds, each with four choices and the reason behind its answer.
Read the full guide
From the sky to Tiwanaku
The Sun on the longest day (16 questions) is the astronomy: the tilt, the midnight Sun, why the latest sunset comes on another date. Names, words and calendars (13) covers estival, sunstead and Litha. Fires, wheels and old records (12) has a bonfire made of bones and dragons at the wells. Midsummer across Europe (13) and Solstice in the Americas and Antarctica (13) visit the festivals.
A round for a June party
At a garden party on June 21, begin with Midsummer across Europe: fern blossoms, oak wreaths and a plastic hammer in Porto make for good guessing. Keep the sky round for the table with a science teacher at it.
- Midsummer across Europe is the gentlest round by our estimate; The Sun on the longest day is the hardest.
- South of the equator, June 21 is the winter solstice. One question says what Antarctic stations call it.
Questions and answers
When is the summer solstice?
In the Northern Hemisphere it is the June solstice, on June 20 or 21. In the Southern Hemisphere it is the December solstice, on December 21 or 22. It is the day with the longest daylight and the shortest night of the year.
What does the word solstice mean?
It comes from the Latin sol, the Sun, and sistere, to stand still. At a solstice the Sun's daily path reaches its northern or southern limit and seems to stop before it turns back.
Is the summer solstice the same as midsummer?
Not quite. The solstice falls between June 20 and 22, but in much of Europe midsummer was traditionally reckoned as the night of June 23 to 24, and England kept June 24 as Midsummer Day.
Is the longest day also the day of the earliest sunrise?
No. The earliest sunrise and the latest sunset fall a few days away from the solstice, because Earth's orbit is an ellipse and its speed varies a little during the year.